The Tainted Wings' Flight
by Hitsukane
Summary: In 19th century Britain, there's no hope for thieves, especially when at tender ages. Oliver knows this, but still wishes to fit in society, even if for one day.Olivia and Ainsley object this. The three of them knew well the consequences that would fall on juveniles like them, yet Oliver still gets his way with mischief. Could his one innocent desire possibly bring him to ruin?
1. Chapter 1: Decision

This is my first fan-fiction EVER okay?

I will gladly accept any critique, no matter how hurtful.

There are no intended pairings **FOR NOW**

****Characters are from VOCALOID; some are given different names.

All VOCALOID characters belong to their rightful owners.

"YOU DAMNED SON OF A-GAAHH!" shouted the man with scurvy as he fell through a trap door. "THANK YOU~!" the boy shouted back at his daily resource for food. His umpteenth success in theft was celebrated with laughter, and the chirping of a Goldfinch.

The faster and further he went down the corridor, the more sound the creaky old wood made. Despite the same basic pattern the youthful brigand used, he was not once caught. He knew the complex of the docks, pier, town, and, marketplace like the back of his hand, thus having a back-up route in the case a pursuer actually had the chance of apprehending him. "Not like that would ever happen" he chuckled, taking a left turn towards the pier. He would only head towards the pier if he's certain there are no pursuers left; tonight, it was absolute. A quick check in his paper bag was all he needed to be perfectly at ease.

_Okay... Five loafs of bread: will be rationed properly, grapes: protection from scurvy? , seeds: for James to eat, and knives: stolen for protection, and if I ever get my hand on some meat! _"Yes, I appear to have everything..."

Looking at the side of the pier, there was a series of rocks that acted as uneven steps for the young lad. After the young lad hopped of the last small boulder, the Goldfinch perched on his shoulder. His feet that tended to be partially covered in bandages were now fully covered in sand. The area under the pier was overall dark, empty, and cold, but as you went further under it, there was what appeared to be a small cave. "Blocked perfectly with a man-made wooden door" one might add, but not one man, woman, or child ever bothered to search this place at night. A few quick knocks, slower ones, and a series of knocks at different sections of the door were followed by silence.

"Revilo" he said breaking said silence.

The door slowly opened; sounds of the wood scraping against the rocks were kept as hushed as possible by the one who slowly allowed entrance into this well concealed home. "Hey Ollie!" A girly voice whispered to him. "Did you bring the food?" a softer, younger voice asked in the background. "YAAAY~! Ollie's back!" an even younger and squeakier voice added.

"Well of course I'm back with food! Why else would I be chased by the same toothless geezer?" Oliver said matter-of-factly. I managed to get even more than usual this time! And that moron still hasn't got the slightest clue what I look like!" acting more triumphant with exaggerated steps, he went to the bird feeder (which was also stolen) and placed in the new bag of seeds. He added a small hole in it before his pet could feed itself. He then placed the bag down that contained the bread and grapes...and knives. "Olivia! Can't you wait for me to ration them out?" The girl nearly identical to him took her hands off one of the bread loaves.

_ There are five loaves, and four people here...so one loaf will be divided into four parts._ "Hey Ollie! What's this?" The younger boy pulled out one of the stolen knives. "Noah! Don't touch those, you may hurt yourself...so give it to me, I do need it after all." Noah gave him his signature begging eyes, but in this scenario, they were rejected that instant. The boy, who appeared only five years of age, gave up the knife to Oliver, who then divided one of the loaves into four pieces. "Each of you take one. You can save it for later, or eat it now as dinner."

Olivia, Oliver's younger twin sister, was the first to take the bread. _Will she always be like this?_ He remembered that at an earlier age, they looked perfectly identical: same blonde hair, yellow-brown eyes, small figure, and the same love for birds. They mutually hated being mistaken for one another. To make it worse, back then, they would often wear the same clothes. _Did Mummy and Daddy have no creativity?_ He always used to think. Now, Oliver wore a mostly white cap with some blue in it, a darkish-blue jacket with some yellow, black shorts, a white buttoned shirt, and bandages on his feet instead of shoes. While she wore a hat in the same similar shape as one made of straw (but was not made of straw), her hair was slightly straighter and went down to her shoulders, and additionally she wore a skirt. If you still couldn't tell the difference between the two...Olivia was missing her right eye. It was not something that either of the two liked to talk about. They actually used to steal together, but there was one day when they were almost caught. A man chased them with a knife; he attacked Olivia, who was not running fast enough. Her eyelid was sliced, along with some of her right eye. It was rendered useless. That night, Olivia held in her tears trying to keep her pride in front of the brother that worried for her. The effort to hold in her tears and keep her pride failed as she extracted the burden from her right eye socket.

Ainsley, a friend about three years younger, was the second to take a ration. How she came to be here is a little confusing. In the back of his mind he remembered her saying something about her running away from home, mainly because she was neglected and abused by her parents. When she first came here she looked anything but that. The red hat, skirt, and vest she wore looked more expensive than everything they had stolen combined at the time (which was a lot). Her face was also very pale and clean, contradicted by her soft black hair that went down to her shoulders. Her brown eyes almost glowed under the moonlight of the night she joined them. Olivia's guess was that she was child of rich people and she stole a bunch of money before she ran away. Nowadays, Ainsley's role in this little hermitage was to use her cute looks and beg for items that can't be gained during night. Fresh water, a mirror, and toothbrushes were the most important contributions she provided. Some problems were that many of the women in town volunteered in adopting her. So many lies had to be made up to prevent that.

Thirdly and reluctantly, Noah has taken his ration of bread, showing no signs of hunger. His background is an even bigger mystery than Ainsley's. He appeared about two or three months after Ainsley. Oliver had found him while he was stealing dinner originally for just him, his sis, and Ainsley. Noah looked like a beaten, abandoned doll. The little sweater vest he wore: completely torn and barely on his body, pants: filthy, shoes: he had none, face and hair: so filthy that there was a complete layer covering them. The 'professional' thief took pity on Noah, and he carried the small child on his back to their dwelling. Everyone ate less that evening, so the poor child wouldn't starve to death. They also helped him take a bath, and did not realize his hair was green until afterwards. No one asks him where he came from, for he already seems to have trouble sleeping at night. He has the same role and issues as Ainsley, He manages to bring clothes to the dwelling, in the case anyone runs out of clothing that fits.

"I remember years ago this was a life-threatening adventure, but now it's like a routine". Oliver took a bite out of his ration. "For you! I don't get to do anything" Noah complained.

"You bring home the type of resources too difficult to steal, a great sidekick you are when we do so" Ainsley assured him, while wrapping her bread for later.

"If anyone, I act like a burden. I clean this place, but other than that..." Olivia stopped speaking

"Don't say another word like that. You're very helpful. No one wants to clean this place!" Oliver continued his attempt to cheer up his sister.

"You have the talent of theft, begging, and keeping this place in shape. The only reason you're not doing anything is because ever since... _that_...it's been too dangerous for you to go outside and steal." he went silent.

Olivia finished her bread silently. "Thanks for trying"

"I'm not hungry~" Noah said with a very sleepy sounding voice.

"You can wrap it" Ainsley suggested handing over some cloth.

"Or I can eat it if you really don't want it" offered the one-eyed girl.

"OH don't!" said Oliver "If you keep eating more than your ration you might become f-"

"WHAT'D YOU SAY?" she stood up glaring at her brother.

"Nothing at all~" he said in a sing-song voice.

"That was definitely NOT 'nothing' " she stormed towards him with a clenched fist.

"Whoa, chill..." Ainsley got between the two siblings. _Do I have to play peace maker again?_ Just as the thought crossed her mind, Olivia shoved her out of the way. A few blows to his chest, arm, face, and a kick right in the kisser that knocked him to the floor. He couldn't react fast enough to block.

"Not again..."

Oliver got up and had his "bring it" face on. Despite the whole "don't hit girls" rule that many men followed, Oliver didn't seem to include Olivia in that. Whenever these two were at it, it appeared as if murder would happen. These two threw such violent blows, that Ainsley was left completely clueless how they ever got along when it was just the two of them. A few (dozen) scratches later, Noah was woken up by the violence; he started crying as usual. "Please, no fight~! It's not nice!" The two felt guilt, and the blows slowed down, concluded with Olivia kicking Oliver again.

"Jeez, will you two ever grow up and stop fighting?" Ainsley asked annoyed.

"Right after you stop sleeping with a teddy bear? That sounds like a deal" Oliver headed towards his corner to sleep.

"**Don't start with me**"

Olivia giggled.

A fire dimmed slightly; the light weakened on the four children, each surrounded by blankets. The nights were cold, but they had to adapt to it, whether it meant willpower or stealing more comforters... mainly both.

The moonless night reminded Oliver of how monotonous his days were: In the morning: eat the leftovers from last night, in the evening: develop some sort of conversation/plan that has something to with theft; at night: steal food to eat for dinner and the morning. Maybe there would be some free time to play games in the afternoon, but that time passed by too quickly._How boring...Will I have to live my whole life like this? A thief in a small place that's constantly worrying about food? I wanna be something different..._"Hmmmm".

The sun was beginning to rise, and James' chirping had woken up the four youngsters. "Man...Morning already~?" Ainsley yawned. Noah remained silent, minus his small breaths that came out as he slept. Olivia reluctantly looked around the room, despite her strong desire to remain asleep. "Where's Oll-ie~?" she asked somewhat groggily. Ainsley's eyes shot open at the sound of those words."What do you mean where is he? She glanced in every direction around her, he was not in the corner he slept, nor was he in the food storage (a large box). The fire was out. James flew towards the door; it was cracked. "Oh... I think I might know where he is" the 9-year-old said now calming down. She put the blanket that covered her to the side and walked out. Letting out another small yawn, she shoved the wooden door to make the walking space less miniature.

"Ollie...What are you doing outside so early?" she said her statement too soon, for the boy was near the end of the pier, reflected by the slow swell of sunlight.

Ainsley walked closer to the end of the pier, slowly followed by Olivia and (even more slowly by) Noah.

She repeated her question, rubbing her eyes. The three only saw his back; he appeared to be looking up the sky, the wind slightly moving his hair and jacket. Oliver let out a content sigh as he turned to face his friends.

"Hey guys, I know this may be too much to ask, but..."

"What?" the three said in unison.

"I want to go to the town."


	2. Chapter 2: Preparation

Credit goes to my peer-editor "Mizushi" (nickname, not an account)

This may contain themes from 'Oliver Twist'.

No intended pairs.  
>_<p>

His three allies had stared at him, dumbfounded. _How could he say something so unfathomable?_The three exchanged glances. Ainsley answered: "No offense…but have you gone mad in any way? Maybe there was something in the bread…"

"I haven't gone mad. Just…I have grown very bored of this lifestyle we have. Even if just for a day, **a few hours**, I want to live like I truly am 'just a kid'. Is that too much to ask?" He knew even more than his friends that the thought of going into the town was absurd, because he heard for himself that there were many that loathed his very existence. The only reason there was no bounty on his head is because no one knew what his "head" looked like. Despite this, the man that controlled the marketplace knew his outline: A moderately flowing jacket, short hair, and a hat. This man also knew about Oliver's bird companion.

"Brother dear…I'm not trying to sound mean, but do you have a death wish?" Olivia asked now fully awake. "I bet that even I, a brigand that has not even stolen a coin in years, would be apprehended by any young man willing to make some quick money. Please speak with some logic"

"Ollie's worth money? Livy is too?" Noah stood there confused, his innocent mind trying to comprehend the dilemma.

"Yes Noah! We are all worth money, because we are _**special**_!" Ainsley said not wanting Noah to learn about the bad things of this world quite yet.

"I will not just suggest 'let's turn ourselves in!' or anything like that. I mean, we could just take a break from living like hermits and thieves" Oliver continued to explain. "Ainsley and Noah are perfectly fine going as is, because they feign a 'good reputation'. Olivia and I are the ones that can disguise ourselves; that way, no one will look at us suspiciously!" He really seemed eager to get out of the dwelling; this left Olivia and Ainsley at a deadlock. Olivia was against the idea, but did not show much resistance. Ainsley had a soft spot for Oliver, so she wanted to come up with some sort of compromise for him.

"Well…there are some clothes in my suitcase that I've barely worn. I could get a loose-fitting dress for Olivia, but what the heck can be done for you Ollie?"

"Clothes? I bring some!" Noah said.

"What?" Ainsley asked.

"Oh, I forgot. Noah begs too. He does _receive_ clothes, but I usually store them away. They may not fit you though Brother."

"We can see about that!" Oliver replied with relief and excitement.

He ran back into the dwelling looking around for this said storage of clothes, but could only see the box that contained food. Olivia followed him in glancing around for the place where she put the new clothes. Oliver turned around to ask where they were, but she held up a finger signaling to wait. After that, she headed to the food storage and shoved it over to the side. There was another hole right under the box; small bags were inside of the once hidden hole. She pulled up the 'largest' of the small bags: a dark brown one made with a rough looking appearance. "Hmm…I think that these **may** fit you. Wanna give it a try?"

Oliver held his hand out for the bag. "Please?" He said with sarcasm. Olivia handed the bag over to him; he immediately opened and looked inside the bag. Inside there was a dark brown hat made of tweed, a maroon vest, a tan buttoned shirt, and white shorts. _Not really my style…but it's better than nothing_ the 12-year-old boy thought. He took off his jacket and hat; just as he was about to unbutton his shirt, his sister shouted "STOP! Let me leave first!" He did so and continued undressing. Once completely undressed, he picked up the white shorts and put them on. They fit perfectly. Next was the tan shirt: he tried to put it on; it was slightly loose, but still fit. The vest fit perfectly, but the hat was a tad too big for his head. He solved this problem by stuffing some of his hair into it. Are there _no shoes?_

Oliver stepped outside for the three to see his 'new look'. "Wow, something can actually make you look good!" Olivia debatably complimented her brother.

"I really like the look on you Ollie!" Ainsley smiled.

"Ollie looks different now!" Noah added.

"…Thanks?" the boy replied somewhat shyly.

"So what about me Ainsley, don't I get a new look?" Olivia asked.

"Of course! If… the clothes fit…" she chuckled nervously.

The two girls then walked into the dwelling. Ainsley led because she was the one lending clothes. Her suitcase, which normally remained untouched, was in the corner where she slept. Her teddy was on top of it. The bear quickly removed it before she would get teased; then she opened the case which had multiple sets of clothes. _Okay…where's the biggest size I have?_ She thought to herself knowing how 'lovely' Olivia's reaction would have been if said aloud. "Oh! Maybe this will work?" she pulled out a pink dress that was slightly translucent at the bottom half; when Yuki would wear it would touch the floor.

"The Color Pink isn't necessarily my cup of tea" Olivia replied as gracious as she could.

"This is the largest garment I have; the rest of the ones I have only fit me. Sorry"

Olivia groaned. She didn't really want to go to town nor wear a dress, but she wouldn't want to be left behind in a dwelling either. In the final reckon, she ended up changing into the dress. On Olivia, the dress was somewhat short: almost half of her legs were showing. This improper proportion made her feel very awkward. "Uh…um…"

"You look so cute in it Livy!" Ainsley almost squealed. "Oh I wish I had brought more dresses with me when I first came here!"

"Oh, really? You must be exaggerating…" Olivia blushed at the word 'cute'. She headed towards the mirror (that was also stolen) to confirm her appearance. Ainsley surely wasn't exaggerating what she said. The dark pink dress complimented her skinny figure. It even put emphasis on her curves (even though girls of her age group rarely cared about such a topic).The magenta strap on her waistline was very lacy and contributed to a 'rich kid look' ,as the current bearer of the garb would describe. Overall, pink went well with the color of her skin. This made her feel happy until she saw her bandages, the one that covered her eye specifically. Acting as a symbol of the results her naivety, this hidden scar would give away her identity to those that would recognize her. Her cheerless face was reflected on the glass. Abruptly, a small comb was in front of Olivia's face. "May I?" Ainsley asked compassionately.

Olivia nodded; Ainsley then began to comb her blonde hair over the bandage. She then added a white hat with a red stripe over her head. This put a shadow over the part of her face they kept as hidden as possible. "Perfect!" Ainsley guaranteed her uncertain friend. "Let's go outside! I would pleasure me to see their astonished looks.

"Heh…" Olivia uttered as if desiring to reply.

"You two done playing dress u-!" The words introduced them outside, along with Oliver's stunned facial expression. "What the…who are you and what have you done with my annoying bratty sister?"

"I'm your sis and I got dressed, problem?" she said trying to hold back laughter. "Your face! If only I could have captured a photo! At least I have my memory…" Olivia did a little spin, whether it was meant to show off or from excitement was completely unknown. "I feel safe in this disguise."

"This… is definitely new for the both of you, huh?" Ainsley said as Oliver was fidgeting and messing with his hat. It was true though: Oliver was always wearing the same jacket and hat; he would occasionally change his shorts and shirt with another set. They would need washing very badly at times.

"Where are we going?" Noah asked.

"We plan to go into the town, but I don't know where exactly" Ainsley replied. "Actually wouldn't be smarter to wait 'till later on in the morning before we go? It's still quite early, and I think that most people would be asleep about now. Wouldn't that be boring?" she said wanting to get some more sleep.

"Yeah I guess that's a good idea." Oliver responded

"Wait for later? You don't have to tell me twice!" Olivia went to take another nap.

"Waiting? That'll be so long~" Noah whined.

"But that'll make the visit more worth it right?" Oliver convinced Noah.

"Okay…" the little boy pouted.

The two boys followed the two girls back into their dwelling, and all went back top their sleeping corners. As the other three took naps, Oliver lay there excited. "I'm finally going to spend a decent time outside of this hole!" he whispered to himself joyfully.

"_I can't wait_…"

Okay…Second Chapter. Thanks **IF** you actually read this far.

If you didn't get the hints from the previous chapter:

Ainsley- "Kaai Yuki" (Will be important)

Noah-Ryuto/Gachapoid


	3. Chapter 3: Fun, Games, and Pain

Thank you for continuing to be a reader of my story.  
>Nearly everything I said in previous chapters applies to the rest of the story~!<br>**What will the gang go through this time?**  
>_<p>

The three slept longer than planned. By the time Oliver woke up, it was nearly past noon. Being the one eager to leave, he had to wake up each of his friends. Noah was already awake. In fact, he looked like he was simply waiting to leave rather than waking up early from a cat nap. Ainsley woke up fairly quickly; she did a few stretches that signaled her conscious. Olivia had to be shaken violently just so she would let out a groan, so Oliver took the opportunity for 'revenge' and kicked her. "OW! Jeez, I'm up, _**Mum**_" She said, rubbing her back area. The three kids then got up to go and left their home.

The sun was still fairly up; Oliver smiled as the light casted over his face. Noah started running around in circles. _Weird kid_, Oliver thought to himself. "So where exactly do we go first? This town isn't a tourist attraction y'know" Ainsley asked.

"Yeah? After all, _**big guy**_, this was your idea" Olivia hissed, clearly irked about her kick to the buttocks. Oliver kept thinking to himself on what to do, taking what felt like a long time for his allies. "Oh! I got it! If my memory serves me right, there should be a park at the end of town! I've seen many children play there when I pass by."

"Oh, so you do have a plan"

"Even though it was thought of at the last minute!" Ainsley giggled.

Oliver grabbed Noah by the hand to stop him from running in circles. He then dragged him over to the other two girls. "Well, let's get going shall we?" The girls nodded; Noah shouted "Okay~!" They each climbed up the rocks, while Noah constantly had to be assisted due to his lacking height. Olivia felt a little nervous stepping on the road. It was the first time she had done so in a while, but she did not want to appear cowardly. Thus, she took a breath and ran after the three who were quite ahead of her. The townspeople were going on with their daily business. Some of the women that consistently asked to adopt Ainsley could be seen, so the young girl hid between Oliver and Olivia. Oliver glanced around him several times, without moving his head. He could recognize many of the black markets and its sellers in the corners and alleys. How awkward it was for him, however not one returned his glance. The disguise must be doing well for him.

Olivia stared at her feet, for she didn't want to show her worrisome expression in front of her friends. "How much further do we have to go?" she asked her brother, as if she didn't want anyone outside the four to hear them. "To the park? It's not that far ahead! You still want to go right?" he responded far too casually. _Is he letting his guard down, or is he just that damn good of an actor? How is he not as nervous as I am? He's the one with a far worse reputation than me after all… or maybe I'm worrying too much and over thinking it all? It is just a mere trip to the park after all. I must be acting like such a worry-wart right now._She snapped out of her stressful trance to realize the this said park was at a distance so close it could be seen." Yay~!" Noah ran ahead of the group with the rush of any youthful child. Ainsley, practically acting like a mother, ran behind telling him that he shouldn't stray from the group. The two blonde siblings weren't bothered by this and kept walking heedlessly.

In a matter of moments, the group was in the very center of the park. It was a drastic change from the somewhat filthy town they constantly ran from. This park has a much more fresh scent to it, a kind of crisp scent with the fragrance of various blossoms. The grass was greener, and there wasn't any trash to be seen. "How amazing is this? Now if only the town was in this conditio—OW!" Oliver shouted as what felt like a stone bounced off his head. "Oh! Terribly Sorry, I truly am!" a voice shouted. He turned the direction from which the stone hit him to see a boy with short brown hair and blue eyes. "Can I have my ball back?"

"You mean this thing?" Olivia held up what looked like a bunch of cloth (badly) sewn together.

"Yes, please."

"What the heck was in that?" Oliver rubbed his head.

"Oh! Mom never wanted to buy me balls. She sewn that together and I filled it with small rocks."

"_**Small rocks**_? I feel like my skull has a crack in it know!" The 12-year-old complained.

"I am sorry!" The short haired boy repeated.

"Hey! What's taking you so long?" A girl's voice shouted. While the two kids in front of him chatted, Oliver noticed how different their accents were. "So what are your names?" he asked. The girl with medium-length blonde hair responded first. "My Name is Lily!"

"And my name is Kyo" The boy followed.

"Key-oh?" Olivia tried to pronounce.

"No, it's pronounced 'Kyo'. Try to say it like one syllable." Lily said.

"Why is your name weird?" Noah asked.

The brown-haired boy hid his irritation. "Well, my family emigrated from Japan, which is another country. Lily's family did too, but her mother married an English man. That's why her name 'sounds normal', however she's still half-Japanese like me."

"Okay, so what game are you playing?" Ainsley asked.

"It was at first catch, but Lily turned it into a death match with her monster strength-!"

"What did you say?" the girl said threateningly as he held the boy in a strangle hold.

"I was kidding-!" the kid managed to force out of his throat.

"Is there any other people with you?"

"Of course! I just threw the ball too far away, so it came here, where there isn't anyone except you four."

Lily let go of Kyo, who then took a very deep breath as if he would have died otherwise. "Follow me!" She ran toward a group of bushes. Upon opening them, a bunch of kids of various ages could be seen. "See? There are plenty of people to play with. Wanna play catch with us too?" Lily smiled. A sort of warm feeling went through the hearts of the outcasts. _What is this?_ They each thought.

"YES PLEASE~!" Noah answered for the entire group. The unanimous action was to participate in the game. Noah ran towards the few kids that appeared his age, while Olivia finally appeared calm enough to stray from her brother and Ainsley. Oliver positioned himself where he could avoid being hit in the head again. Ainsley just stayed put after entering the game.

"We got some new kids!" Lily began. "Let's not be mean! Do you four want to introduce yourselves?"

"My name's Oliver"

"Olivia"

"My name is Ainsley"

Noah was laughing and speaking some words that could not be understood from an older kid's perspective. After a few more seconds of him ignoring the etiquette, Ainsley told the kids Noah's name. "Okay then, let's play!" _She must be the kid in charge or something_ Olivia thought. As time flew by, Oliver became very popular, very quickly. Almost every kid knew him, or at least heard of him by the end of the first game. Everyone would pass to him at least once; he was very content with this environment. Olivia grew twice as aggressive after a certain point. Sibling rivalry never ceases with these two, when given the opportunity. Her throws feeling like punches if you caught them, in fact, it was more painful to catch them than to have the ball hit your hand. Ainsley caught on to this and purposely situated into a new spot blocking Oliver from Olivia's view. Noah didn't appear to be playing their game at all. He was carelessly attempting to play hide and seek with the younger children, who were hiding in places so obvious it was laughable. The only thing more laughable was that Noah struggled to find them.

Moments later, Olivia was getting very sweaty, so she decided to take a seat on the far off grass. A girl she didn't know, an older one with brown hair, sat next to her. "You gettin' tired too?" she asked.

"Yeah, competing with my idiot of a brother can be very tiresome." She replied with a sigh.

"Ha-ha! I can guess that much! You two looked ready to fight on the spot! Since you're new, I can guess you don't know Ms. Greene."

"Who is she?"

"She's a fairly young woman. I doubt she'll be single for long. Oh, um, she gives us refreshments when we've been playing really long."

"Where is she normally?"

"If you go to the end of this street, she is typically waiting for a kid to come by. This became a routine after a while, but I remain one of the few to actually thank her."

"I guess I can be added to that once I get there!" Olivia got up quickly at the thought of free refreshments, after having that habit developed over years. She was very relieved that the whole 'break-from-hermit-hood' idea appeared to go flawlessly. "I'll be back! If my brother asks, tell him I'm at Ms. Greene's place! Same thing if Ainsley or Noah asks." She headed down the street. As she walked, she realized the sun was not too far from setting completely. _Wow kids are just left out here late, huh? I better get these refreshments quickly, or else everybody will be gone when I'm back!_ Olivia began to run.

She noticed a figure was coming out of the corner nearby her, but was unable to slow down on time. The man was too large to be knocked down by the force of her relatively small body, while she practically bounced off of him. Her hat came off, her hair spread slightly out, revealing her bandages that covered her missing eye. "Oww…" she rubbed the parts of her that hit the ground. "I'm sorry Mis—" Without even finishing the statement, Olivia stared at the man, eyes widening each second she scanned his face: A small amount of facial hair, the uneven tan, yellow eyes, and several scattered gold teeth. Her face had turned completely pale.

"I-I'M SORRY!" Olivia sprinted, simultaneously grabbing her cap that had fallen off. How terrifying it was for her to see him: The man that had taken her right eye.

_  
>Thanks for reading this chapter~!<br>Reviews that have compliments encourage the writer to do it faster. Ones that have constructive criticism improve that person's writing.

Writer or not, a good review is the perfect gift for anyone~!


	4. Chapter 4:Unwanted Reunion

**_This chapter will contain improper language~! (Warning for the clean folks)_**  
>_<p>

The young girl swiftly increased the distance between the two people, becoming a miniature pink spot at the far end of the street, before she finally took a pivot to the left and vanished. He raised an eyebrow at the young lass who had acted so peculiar. "Now who was that li'l girl?" he said to himself, honestly not recognizing her. _Her face rings a few bells, but…_ "Ahh! I don't have the time ta be worryin' 'bout this!" the man turned to face the final house on the street. "**Miss Vienna! Ya' el'gant lass! I need a word with ya'**!" he shouted.

"You better not be trying to make another quick move on me!" She snapped, holding a tray of small treats.

"Aw Vienna, you know I'd never make a move on a woman willing to hurt me with silverware, but mooching off your food is like a blessing!" He smiled, showing some of his decaying teeth. "Now if only I can have a bite of these…err…"

"Scones" She stated indifferently.

"Why thanks!" He took the recently baked treat and put it in his mouth, letting his saliva do the work of softening it before he began to chew.

"Heinrick McCarter! Did your mother fail to teach you manners along with grooming?" she hissed icily.

"Will you quit acting like her? I swear, you act as her spitting image, only with a deadlier tongue" He pulled the scone out of his mouth as if to return it.

"As if I'd want it now!" She spoke harshly and distantly.

"There's that deadly tongue of yours again!" _Now to get me some more of her home-made grub!_ The man always came to her to receive his dinners. Heinrick only had enough money to get one meal per day; that one meal was free, the forced courtesy provided by Vienna. Despite the nice woman she normally was, her temper was quite short with McCarter. However, having known the man since the time he actually deserved title, Vienna could not help but take pity on him and spare some of her own staples with him during her time of surplus, which was his time of need.

'Pity' does not mean 'liking' though. She rarely spoke to him. When she does so, it is typically an insult, or something around the lines of 'Shoo! Go away!' Ms. Greene pointed to the wooden table, which had some stew, more scones, and tea on top of it. Heinrick did his signature sleazy smirk before sitting and chowing down. "Hmm~ hardly any of the young ones came by today, and I even made extra scones just for them."

"I wouldn't waste time on brats that won't even appreciate it"

"So maybe I should stop giving them to you?" Vienna gave a smile so _sweet_ it gave him chills.

"Hey! I appreciate every last crumb!"

Heinrick McCarter: he despised children from the very pit of his heart, but tried his best to hide it. After all, harboring hatred towards young children is frowned upon. His reason for loathing youth occurred three years ago. His family's business was trading materials; he was even a merchant that traveled overseas at times, but no one cared except him.

One day, he was emptying the barrels from the ship his crew owned. Many of the men made jokes on how this was the area where thieves could even hide themselves among the cockroaches! He snorted at such remarks. It was not that long after, he noticed the indistinct rumbling of the barrels. The one that had contained fruit was noticeable among the rest. He edged near the cargo he had unloaded, for he suspected an intruder, but not even a roach appeared to be there. He opened some of the containers to make sure; the barrel that had fruit was noticeably emptied. This angered him, because the price of fruit was heavy, and he had even went through the trouble of keeping it in its best condition possible for selling! His face grew a light shade of red due to frustration. Not long after, shouting would be heard from many:

"Those scoundrels are at it again! Why isn't anyone doing something?" They also said thieves were running through the market's crowd. Upon them coming into his view, Heinrick had given chase to them. The two escapees were fast on their feet, despite their somewhat short legs. The merchant was too persistent to let them escape with what literally would be his money to support himself for weeks, so his running transformed to an exponential sprint. One of the 'rats' yelled something which was more than likely a strategy; they had went into two directions. The excellent merchant followed his instincts and gave chase to the one with more of the 'merchandise'. People turned to see the two figures in a cat-and-mouse chase, before they disappeared far from the market, and near the harbor area.

The occasional, and sometimes very repetitive, glances backward hinted the 'mouse' was starting to panic. He took the advantage to shout: "Give it up now and you won't be hurt!" his only intention was an empty threat, but the young thief took this threat too seriously and began to get more and more evasive. Heinrick was now sure that this must have been a child. After several immediate turns and cuts through buildings, the merchant successfully managed to corner this now heavily panting fugitive, who let an apple drop to the dirty floor.

_ Without a doubt this is a kid._ He took out his knife, as he always would do when there is a thief, thinking that would be enough to make the child give up. Shaking, the juvenile turned its head in different directions for an opportunity to escape. The only way was through Heinrick, who had his knife pointed forward if that route would be taken. _The youngster_ _should've cracked and surrendered by now. _The man backed away, knowing that an escape attempt was inevitable, the knife still in his hand. This way there was a larger opportunity for him to capture, and a larger opportunity for him/her to escape to be used as bait. The bait was taken. The criminal pulled the cap over its head and ran forward. Heinrick ran toward the child to grab him/her, but that apple had made him trip. Just as he fell, the knife in his hand was in front of child. He moved his arm downward so he could stop his fall; he then heard a horrible screech that was terrifying to him, followed by sobbing. He got up to see a girls face, blood and tears mixing together and they dripped down her face. His glanced at his knife and saw blood on the tip.

"Little Lass, I'm terribly sorry!" Heinrick went toward the girl to see how bad she was injured. She screamed "I'M SORRY! I'M SORRY! PLEASE DON'T HURT ME ANYMORE!" while backing up. Her hand covering her right eye made him aware of where she was stabbed. "I'm not gonna hurt you-!"

"WHAT DID YOU DO TO MY SISTER?" was shouted so loud that the merchant was cut off and stunned all together. He suddenly felt something rough and hard, lie a brick, hitting him in the cheek. The young boy, who had thrown the stone, ran up to the injured and petrified girl; he held her while pulling her away from Heinrick, who was still kneeling down in shock. While in this state, he could hear "Livy? Livy, it's gonna be okay, don't worry" in a hushed volume. Every passerby looked at the scenario in disgust that was directed toward Heinrick, even though the boy that called him out was the accomplice in the theft. No one except the accused Heinrick knew this, because the young lad had hidden his stolen goods. Not only did the two 'brats' get away with his food, they were the cause for his reputation going to ruin. No one would purchase merchandise from a man that stabs children, then gets beat by one. His former co-workers would not speak to him in fear of their own status being spoiled; he was given the title of a mere thug, if that, all because of two kids that could have simply begged him for food instead.

"If you keep this up, I will make you bring your own teacups" made Heinrick realize that he was crushing the handle to the point where there were visible cracks. "Sorry Vienna…I was jus' thinking" _About the spawn of bitches that ruined me_, he kept to himself. The little manners he had left after being labeled a brute were used for putting away the emptied dishes. The final part of the routine, that had not taken place yet, was Vienna kicking him out of her home. Before he could think of a way to stall, there was a very loud and abrupt knocking on the door.

"Oh! The young ones were a little late today weren't they?" smirked Vienna as she went to open the front door.

"Not more trollop spawn" whispered Heinrick, to himself so he wouldn't deal with the wrath of the youth embracer. She welcomed the guest in, but the offer was denied. Heinrick stayed out of sight, for the only one he didn't truly hate was Vienna.

"_**Have you seen my sister? I was told she'd be here**_!" The familiarity of that voice hit Heinrick like a brick to the cheek. His eyes widened as he thought: _is me own mind shitting me now?_ He crept toward the corner where he was originally avoiding, so he could get a peak of this 'guest'. Vienna was looking down, smiling at the brown-eyed blonde that had shamed his status a mere two years ago. _If that boy is the same, then!_He abruptly realized how the girl that bumped into him was missing an eye, and how she shouted "I'M SORRY!" in the same way back then. _How dare they have the nerve to show their disgusting faces after ruining me?_Anger gradually filled him to the point where if he looked at the boy, he would certainly end up hurting a child with intention this time around. He used logic before following his emotions, and gritted his golden teeth together waiting for the boy to leave.

"What, you didn't see her anywhere? Oh man…Well thanks for telling me!" The door slammed.

"So he finally left?" Heinrick stepped out of the corner, appearing ready to leave.

"Yes, so when will you?"

"Right now, I've grown tired"

"You should do this more often" said Vienna looking both surprised and relieved.

Without responding, the man closed the door after walking out. Oliver was nowhere in sight, which was a good thing for the both of them. Whenever Heinrick was mad, he was like an insane alcoholic, without actually being drunk. However, when he was drunk, he acted very calm and somewhat collected. The man who worked at the market place, who was his cousin, spared him a few bottles at times, typically out of pity. Knowing that, the former merchant went to go for another drink before the market was closed for the night.

Dylan McCarter, the owner and cousin of Heinrick, stepped outside upon seeing the man get closer to the market. "Hello, cousin! Did that Vienna lady kick ya' out again?"

"No, I left with my own intentions" scoffed Heinrick.

"It's been a while…did you come for a drink?"

"Do I ever come for anything else?"

The market owner laughed. "Let me guess: Beer?" He walked into the store; the former merchant followed him in. A few drinks later, Dylan looked like he would've passed out. "Ya' never been that good handling yer alcohol, have ya?" Heinrick took Dylan's half-empty cup and finished it. "I actually was having a drink just before you came! Brats got me again…" defied Dylan.

"Brats? So I'm not the only one with a problem…"

"I don't mean the weird hatred you've got for kids; I mean this kid that robbing me of merchandise. I've never been able to even catch a glimpse of the bastard…"

"Heh! A Child thief sounds far too familiar. Remember why I lost my job?"

"Ya stabbed a kid, then another came shouting?"

"Yeah, I even saw the kid today! Both of them I met by chance! Did you know that those two kids were stealing food from me the day I lost my job? The boy that came shouting is known by many of the 'petty thugs' like me, as a brigand nonetheless!"

"Are you trying to make a point?" asked Dylan, gradually getting out of his dizzy spell.

"My gut's tellin' me that the same person who ruined my career is the same who steals your goods today"

"Anyway to confirm that?" asked Dylan, now completely out of his dizzy spell and in doubt.

"When you described the kid, you said he had a bird companion, correct?"

"Yes…so?"

Heinrick pointed out toward the window, where a goldfinch had just few by. "Better follow quickly" He grabbed his cousin's arm and ran through the door, which was slammed shut with Dylan's foot. The finch continued to fly, and then it did a few circles before resting upon the shoulder of a young boy with a concerned face. "_**I haven't seen Olivia anywhere! What about you Ainsley?**_"

"No I haven't. What if she just went back without telling us?"

"_**She wouldn't just do that…unless she had a reason.**_"

In the corner where the two men hid, they were eavesdropping on the conversation as Dylan was looking at the three kids. Heinrick asked if they were familiar; Dylan replied that he knew Ainsley and Noah, since they were popular amongst the town's people.

"I meant the taller one specifically" whispered Heinrick. Dylan was cut off before he could even respond.

"_**Well…If you really think so, I'll go and check the dwelling!"**_ The blonde then ran directly past the corner where the two men were hiding, followed by the bird companion. _Wait a minute…the way he runs is just like the thief, and that voice sounds similar to the one that taunts me!_ "Heinrick! This must be the kid!" There was no response, nor was there a person to respond. "What? Don't just take a piss then leave me!" Dylan took a guess and ran in the same direction that boy took. In a matter of seconds, he could see Heinrick, who was also giving chase while avoiding being in the boy's sight. The three passed by the docks, and finally headed towards the pier.

Oliver headed down the rocks as swiftly as he could before running under the pier. The wooden door that was normally closed shut was cracked open. This only made Oliver more worried. He opened the door wide enough for him to walk through; the first thing he saw was Olivia: She was sitting in the corner in a fetal position, shuddering violently. "Livy…Why are you acting like this? Why did you leave without telling me or the others? I was worried sick!" He went closer to her, so he could calm her down. "You act as if you saw someone get killed! What happened?"

"Well…I guess it's indirectly like that…" Olivia trailed off, still in fear. Her brother was confused by this.

"_What_ happened?" this time said with a little more demand.

"Well I saw…"

"You saw _who_?"

"When I was about to go to Ms. Greene, I bumped into a guy that looked very creepy and ran" Olivia partially lied, so she would not have to worry her brother on the fact that she saw the man who has a grudge against both of them.

"Is that all? You're more the type to go:_Excuse me creep! I'm gonna get snacks!_" parodied Oliver, knowing this would get a reaction.

"SHUT UP!" Olivia clenched her fists. _Okay, here it comes,_ he thought. Just as Olivia stood up, Ainsley came in and shouted "I DO **NOT** WANT TO DEAL WITH ANOTHER FIGHT!" The two immediately sat back down and giggled at her reaction. Noah added "I don't like fights either~! They are bad!"

"I agree~!" Oliver parodied Noah's voice.

"That's bad too!" Noah noticed the sarcasm (without knowing what the word for it is). The others laughed at Noah's late reaction.

"You see now? We just have to find a way to deal with this pest dwelling, and we're both set!"

"I understand how this benefits me, but will you gain from this Heinrick?"

"I get to return the favor to the little bastard! That's enough satisfaction!" his sleazy grin returning.

"So how exactly do we deal with this?" asked Dylan.

"I got to know quite a few people ever since I became a 'thug'…and I know just the right person to help us deliver revenge…for the right price…"

"Who?"

"He is called Andrew"


	5. Chapter 5: Arrangements

It was at the darkest part of dusk; not a single person could be seen, neither child nor adult. Footsteps were the only sounds that could be heard besides the wind. Those footsteps belonged to two men that both went by the name McCarter, who had immoral plans intended for the infamous brigand, Oliver. They did not want to directly hurt the boy, for their reputations meant everything to them, so, like any person with money would do, they looked around to find any ruthless thug willing to harm for a fair price. The 'market' for this kind of 'merchandise' could not be found in the town that Oliver nor Dylan resided in. However, Heinrick's experiences after being fired made him much more aware of the corrupted parts in several cities. For the sake of their lacking time and best convenience, they went to the ghettos of the neighboring, and quite overpopulated, city.

"You sure that this is the place where we'll find your man?" asked an impatient Dylan.

"I been in this place only once, and that lad has kept it burnin' in my memory"

"Why is it so cold here? Our town isn't that far and it's much warmer…"

"These ghettos don't have fireplaces you twit! Deal with it like a man!" Heinrick walked faster after saying this, as if Dylan's question had made him aware of the temperature. "I can practically see my own breath in here…" noted Dylan as he fell a few feet behind. Shivering, the market owner forced himself to catch up with his cousin.

Dylan knew for himself that ghettos weren't the best place to live, but even his worst image from imagination couldn't compare to the state of some parts: wallpaper completely torn, broken glass, unstable doors, and a concrete floor that made the place seem like prison. _The horrible circumstances one must have gone through, only to end up in a__loathsome place such as this!_Dylan pitied the residents that he did not even know living here. _Crimes appear to happen often here, but why haven't I seen even one person, let alone one that would try to jump us? Maybe my cousin has a reputation here as well…_

"Quit yer dreamin'! We're almost there!" Heinrick half shouted as if he would prefer not to be heard. The two took one turn to the right, and went down the stairs to the basement of the place, which felt at least ten degrees colder than the floor they were originally on. How people lived in these conditions was out of the average person's understanding, especially Dylan's. There stood the first decent quality door Dylan recognized. Heinrick knocked on the door without hesitation shouting: "Andrew! I need some business with ya'! C'mon Andy! I've got cash this time!"

After the completion of the last statement, the door was opened, very casually. A man with a red hat and buttoned shirt to match greeted him amazingly kind for one who lives in such a dump. Heinrick cut off the potential conversation, for he was always more about business.

"Fine, then what did you come for?" he asked miffed.

"I would like to use any 'resources' you have to deal with this pest"

"What does the 'pest' look like?" Andy said it rather plainly with no regard that this person could possibly be innocent. He held up a finger. "Wait, don't describe _it_ yet. I have to get my artist out…Danielle! You're needed!" A purple-haired girl rose from the corner, letting out a cough. Her clothes were old, but the black hat she wore was still in good condition. Andy had handed her a piece of paper and a pen before gesturing her towards Heinrick. "Listen carefully…" her boss had told her.

"Umm…" Her buzz-like voice had started. "Okay, I'm ready, please start describing…" she said after sitting down on an old wooden desk. "Well…" started Heinrick.

"He's a young lad, around the pre-adolescent age. His eyes are a yellowish-brown shade; he normally has a type of mischief behind his smile. The hair on him is fairly messy and blonde…and his skin is partially on the pale side. He typically wears a cap and jacket, and he has a pet bird that is yellow and black."

She had the outline of Oliver's face drawn pretty quickly, but the approximation and details from the way he was described took a little while. Danielle had signaled the finish of her sketch with a sigh. "Is this what he looks like?" She asked, looking glad to have that over with. A feeling of guilt always went over her once she finished a sketch, for she knew this person's days would now be numbered. This girl, who was practically a rejected orphan, could do nothing that would salvage the poor boy's 'happy' life.

"I'd say it looks pretty accurate! Ya' should've been one of those picture sellers on the streets! You would make plenty to get by!" Dylan complimented the purple-haired preteen.

"Ahem! Heinrick, I need the sketch _now_." Andy had said with a cruel tone so sudden, it sent chills down the backs of the young artist and market owner. Heinrick had taken the sketch from Danielle's position before she was even aware it, and then he handed it over to Andy. The blonde man pushed his hat up with his finger and stared at the picture blankly. He blinked a few times, and then got up from his chair. Still looking at the picture, he headed towards a small shelf. Andy had kicked the shelf to the side a few times, revealing a hidden door. The door was very short; Danielle would have to bend down just get it, let alone Andrew. He bent down to the point his hands were only inches from the floor, and then entered the dark room. The three had waited outside for several minutes. "Hey! Why is this guy taking his sweet time? I've got kids to feed and a wife to please." Dylan had said, more impatient than ever.

"Ahh-!" an adolescent voice had yelped, showing that the sweet time had been taken. In a matter of seconds after the short cry, a young, blonde, and somewhat scrawny boy ran out of the dark space, followed 'casually' by Andy. "This look close enough?" The man in red held the sketch next to the boy's face. After a few instances of examination, Heinrick confirmed that 'this' looked very similar to Oliver (without mentioning his name), and Dylan asked what was the purpose of pulling out this look-alike.

"Can't you use that brain of yours like you do fer business?" His cousin asked rudely. "It's called '_frame_' me cousin"

"…Jeez"

"So, cough up the cash if you want to use this kid." Andrew had held out his hands expectantly. _What price would the man want for a boy who appeared starving?_Dylan wondered as he took out a random amount of cash, about to count it. Before he could do so, Andrew had snatched it without showing any care for his rude act. After counting the money, he had put it in his pocket. Dylan stared at the man purely dumbfounded. How could he have the nerve to just take his money? _Is that how things work in the ghetto?_The man had thought still stunned. Even though he worked in business, the town where he sold in didn't have people so… criminal-like. "Well, why are you still standing there? The kid's yours now."

"What? We bought a child?" Dylan asked.

"No, not 'bought', you _**rented**_ the kid, who should have introduced himself."

The boy flinched hearing his mention. "Uh…! My name's Henry Lou…Sir!" he appeared a little shy and timid. "How is this timid, little jitter box gonna do the job?" Heinrick asked, frustrated.

"Oh, don't worry. Once he's a good distance away from me, he's like a different person, and he gets his job done!" Andy had rested himself on a chair before insisting that they leave the premises. The three were now on the cold street outside the ghetto, heading back to Dylan's home town. "What benefit was this? I lost nearly all my cash for this stick?"

"Revenge, when at its most efficient, takes time…" Heinrick grinned; the boy shivered in the early spring temperature, which was cold at night.

"So…Hen, Lou, or whatever yer name is…are ya' really good at yer job the way Andy said?" The boy looked at him with sudden dagger-like eyes which immediately softened. "My name's **Henry Lou**. If I wasn't good at my assignments, then I would be found on the cold streets, dead or barely alive. By the way, do you have any food? That tyrant doesn't feed me enough." He held his growling stomach. "I figured. Your belly's been at it like a dyin' walrus… I know just the place for you to get grub for free…"

After an hour's worth of walking, the three males had made it in front of Ms. Greene's door. Heinrick knocked on it, very loudly, to wake up the young woman. The faint stomps towards the door grew louder right before she swung the door open. "What do you want? Can't you see I'm getting my beauty sleep?" Vienna seemed cranky, very cranky. "Well…" Heinrick feigned a pitiful, sad-type look. "I found this poor, starvin' lad out in the cold streets shivering like a wet dog. Could you spare him some food and a warm place?" Before he had finished his act, the woman had long looked at the child and brought him in going: "Oh, you poor thing! I'll see what I can get for you."

The boy, Dylan, and Heinrick had sat in the kitchen, waiting for her to finish cooking. In the end, all that was given to Henry Lou was the staple: stew, scones, and tea. Not one table manner was shown as he ate. After finishing, his clothes were in an even bigger mess than before, if that were actually possible. "My goodness! You're getting changed; don't even think of rebelling against this. Wait here" The woman walked upstairs to find a change of clothes, and the three waited patiently. Heinrick decided to talk a little bit to the boy about his duty. "'Kay 'Henry Lou' … do you know the reason why you're being 'rented'?"

"It better not be for acting like a sex toy" he whispered, getting disgusted at the thought. "Of course not! Aren't I more decent than that?"

"How should I know that? You're the one that purchased me."

"With **MY** money…" Dylan added, still peeved.

"Your goal for now is to make yourself look like the person that was in the sketch…did you get a glimpse of it?"

"Yes, I did, while you were comparing our face-"

"Okay, I'm back! Hey kid! Change in these, I hope they fit!" Vienna handed over the boy an overall white (and noticeably oversized) shirt, with some red in it, and then some light blue shorts. Henry Lou nodded and left to change upstairs. Vienna turned to Heinrick as if wanting to ask something, but the 'poor child' had already finished changing, and was tugging on her night gown. She faced down to see his face.

"Miss…" he started sweetly "May I use some items to fix my hair?" This question made everyone realize the yellow jungle that rested atop his head.

"Oh sure! The brush, comb, and the scissors can be found in the bathroom. My weed whacker can be found on the last door to the left" she joked.

"Thank You!" he ran up the stairs to get his objective done. Ms. Greene now looked at the two men with a skeptical expression. _Why did these two, especially Heinrick, develop this ability to be kind? Something must not be right… but I can't worry about it now. The earlier I go to sleep the better! _She kindly asked the two men to leave. They left knowing that traumatic events would take place otherwise.

Several knots and split ends from the purchased lad's hair had fallen down to the bathroom floor. He combed through the remaining hair that was not cut, taking out several knots, and brushed what was left. He used the comb to part his hair and set it going in different directions. Looking at the mirror made him feel confident in his abilities of imitation. Ms. Greene told him to retire in the room next door to the left, for she had set up a bed. He did not deny this order after having to walk in cold weather for over an hour.

Once he was in the bed, completely covered in blankets (something he never had before), he went into serious thought of how he would carry out his job. He trusts Danielle with her sketching ability, but Heinrick looks too dumb for his details to be trusted. _Now that I have someone to take advantage of, I need to figure out who this person is, for the sake of accuracy, but how will I find him? Where are places that people around our age group congregate? I don't even know this local area. I could feign being a child that wants a mother, so she can show me those places, then I will look for my target, who remains nameless…Those two have better paid a lot. To leave me this much in the dark, then expect me to aim at a person who I barely have a clue about? Whatever, I can worry more about this in the morning. For now…I should just focus on sleep…okay, sleep. Like…right now._

After several minutes, he finally managed to force himself to sleep, mentally prepared for much work in the morning.  
>_<p>

I am absolutely amazed if any person is wasting their time reading this (I feel flattered...)

**Review**s always make me happy, for they show that you would actually give **my** **story** the time of day.

**Please** continue reading and reviewing my story, after all...doesn't that motivate the writer**?**


	6. Chapter 6:Confrontation

Sound asleep, Oliver laid down in his corner, having a dream much more pleasant than normal. His bird, James, had remained silent that morning, as if respecting the boy's slumber. Noah and Olivia were playing a basic 'game' drawing in the sand, and Ainsley watched over the only 'hermit' who was not awake. Oliver's profile while sleeping was so graceful, like an angel. That description would be considered very ironic since he's a thief with a not-so-great reputation.

Finally after losing all her patience, the girl had started shaking him. He groaned; James began to chirp, leading the boy to say "Five more minutes…I'm tired…" _He surely didn't play that hard yesterday, nor was his effort to find Olivia that exhausting…so what's his problem? _"HEY WAKE UP!" Ainsley yelled while kicking him, a 'strategy' she learned from Olivia. He grunted and got up reluctantly. "_Good morning_" he said peeved. "_Morning? _Try late afternoon, kid!" she retorted despite being a younger age. A ration of bread was thrown at Oliver, who took a bite immediately after catching it. "Why are you all dressed, and where are Olivia and Noah?" he brushed some hair from his face with his fingers and took another bite.

"We were invited by the kids to play again!" she answered, purposely leaving out that the main reason was Oliver that they got invited. "Lily and Kyo seemed especially excited to see us again!" she added in that fact's stead. He shot up at the thought of being 'a normal kid' again. "Really? Then what are we waiting for?" He swiftly finished his breakfast and looked under his sheet for the clothes he wore. Ainsley walked outside, blushing at the mental images she had of him changing. Noah, after losing the umpteenth round, asked where 'Ollie' was.

"I'm right here!" he wiped the bread crumbs off his face. "If you're ready, then let's go!"

"Nah, I don't wanna go now~!" Noah said, as if determined to win this game against Olivia, who invented the game. "Good luck Noah…" Ainsley followed Oliver up the rocks, and both went back to the park.

Earlier in the morning, the scent of meat had woken up Henry Lou like a dog. He opened his eyes and realized he was in a dullish green room. He rubs his eyes and got out of the bed, scurrying downstairs to satisfy his hunger. Peaking into the kitchen, he saw Ms. Greene cooking some sausage, and eggs already appeared cooked.

"You could've stayed in bed longer if you wanted to…" She smiled putting down his plate.

"Yeah…! Sure!" Henry Lou ran to the plate. "Thanks for the food!" shouted happily before he shoveled up his breakfast. By the time Vienna had set down her own plate, he was already finished.

"What are you, a black hole?" She stared at the plate that didn't even have a single drop of sauce, nor grease; she was simply happy there were no scratches or teeth marks on the plate.

"Can I have some more please?" He stared at her eagerly, after all, who doesn't like free food? In response, she nudged her plate toward him with a nervous smile, showing signs that she lost her appetite. As he kept chewing on the first piece of sausage, Vienna offered:

"Would you like a bath? I can look for more spare clothes" _I guess that's her nice way of saying 'you stink' _he thought, realizing his own foul scent. He ate slower than the first plate, this time enjoying the delicious cooking she had given him…_No wonder Heinrick mooches on her… _he muttered quietly, his mouth full with the last 'bite'. "I'll be upstairs…fixing up the bath" walking up the said stairs, Vienna carried the expression proving her complete loss of any craving for food.

_So after the bath…I'll ask to go outside and get more acquainted with the local area. Damn it, I don't feel like working! Sadly, those idiots rented me, so I don't have a choice._He stroked his hair. _Did they even mention the name of my target? No!_

"Hey, Kid, your bath's ready! I set clothes next to it as well! If you excuse me…I'll be attending my garden now!"

"Oh! Before you go, may I go outside and play?" he beamed with innocence beyond phony, yet she didn't notice.

"_**After**_ you take a bath, yes" She smiled, and then exited the premises.

Henry Lou went up the stairs, to the bath, took it, and then changed into his clothes, in a matter of minutes. Vienna had questioned whether or not he actually bathed, but the mediocre scent proved he did.

_Now…for work._

"Hey Ollie!" Many kids had waved at him once he was in sight. "What am I, chopped liver?" Ainsley was clearly miffed at her unpopularity. "I'm sure they'll greet you too Ainsley…" he whispered back.

"Nice too meet you again Ainsley!" Kyo had said, with almost perfect timing; she smiled in return. Lily walked up to Oliver, cracking her knuckles (out of habit, not malice), so he asked what's wrong.

"Nothing…I was just gonna ask what you want to play, since the others want to do what you wanna do…"

"What I wanna do?" He thought. "Uh… I thought you would have a game prepared... if it's not dodge ball, then I'm okay with it."

"Aww! Why'd ya have to be a bummer?" Kids were cheering with relief in the background. She glanced at them all with an anger that sent chills.

"The only thing I can think of besides that is 'hide and seek…!' " whined the rejected blonde.

"That's far too boring! Ollie, can't you think of something?" Ainsley asked.

"Ummm…" He snapped his fingers, signaling a new idea "Why don't we play pirates?"

"That sounds like a cool idea!" many said unanimously. Kids started to gather 'swords', 'eye patches', and 'cannons'. Oliver was the Captain on the side everyone wanted to join, and Lily was the other. Some 'pirate talk' and threats took place before their play battle. Rock flew and swordfights took place throughout the park. Some parents came due out to concern. Five minutes into the 'battle', and three people remained: Lily, Oliver, and Kyo (Ainsley was also standing, but gave up playing). Kyo and Lily faced Oliver ready to attack; Oliver put up a stance in preparation. In less then a minute, Kyo laid on the ground, the puncture mark on his shirt showing the easy target he ended up being. Finally: A showdown between the two captains would take place. Lily lunged herself at Oliver, who blocked her sword . The weapons scraped against one another constantly as the quarrel continued. Ainsley watched eagerly, cheering for Oliver (to herself).

The fight that went a little too far for 'play' had exhausted both players. After a series of panting, the two went for the 'final strike'. Sadly, the battle was ended before they could even lay a finger on each other, for both had collapsed on the floor. "What...just happened?" Ainsley stared at the two collapsed players, now walking toward them. Two rocks lay next to them answering her question. Ainsley looked in almost every direction, but did not see anyone else standing. _Who threw these?_ She thought to herself. A few seconds later, all the kids started to get up, wanting to play another round. Meanwhile,the two captains remained on the floor, showing signs of headaches. _Wow these two are hopeless._Ainsley helped Oliver up, and then Lily. "Ever heard of 'ladies first'?" she muttered. "So Oliver, want to play another round?"

"You're so getting your butt kicked this time!" He declared as if it were truth.

"Right after I kick yours!" Lily laughed.

As they joked, Ainsley looked past the trees into a spot she had overlooked. In that shaded spot stood a young boy dressed in very plain clothes. She immediately suspected he was the one that threw those rocks, glancing back the heads of the two blondes, which had no noticeable boy was gone when she looked back at the spot.

_ So the kid's name is Oliver! The sketch was slightly off, but I can still pull off as him…what's with that girl looking at me? Anyway…I should somehow find a way to get closer to him. The details on his face are important too…along with the patterns of his body movement, the way he talks…_Henry Lou continued to go through his mental checklist. _I will have to meet with Heinrick again sometime soon before I go further than this, maybe during dinner. For now, I'll just blend in and examine this Oliver kid's behavior._

"Down to you two again?" Ainsley giggled at her peers who continued their interrupted duel. "Can't…talk…while…fighting!" the two said in nearly perfect unison. Drops of sweat dripped from Lily's face and neck. She was finally reaching her limit. _I guess it's only natural, since Oliver has more experience with being a thief._ Ainsley sat in the grass, feeling tired. She looked up at the sky with her half-opened eyes. _Huh? Is it already near evening? How man rounds have they played? I want to take a nap sooner or later…preferably sooner._

She felt a slight kick on one of her sides, and then blinked a few times to see Oliver's face hovering over hers. A drop of his sweat fell on her face. _EW, well someone had fun._ Ainsley rubbed the drop off her face and told him she was ready to leave. He responded saying that she should go back on her own, but be careful.

"I'll see if I can bring some food from Miss Vienna home" was whispered into her ear before Oliver began to walk away, taking his time due to the used up energy. Ainsley put up no argument, for she would have left herself regardless. Some of the kids were taken home against their will by their parents. _Sucks for them,_ he smirked. _I don't have to worry about parents forcing me home…_ The mischievous mood he was in became a depressed one. How many years had it been since his parents abandoned him, along with his sister Olivia? Was it on accident? Did they not care for their own children? Of all days to be abandoned…why were they left on their birthday? Though he showed no care when it came to such subjects, his feelings brought him down inside, creating a slightly bigger hole in his heart than before. He shook his head vigorously.

"I can't be thinking about such a stupid thing now!" he shouted to snap out of it, earning the odd glances of adults.

Ignoring them, Oliver started to increase his pace. Maybe he could catch up with Ainsley, if he walked fast enough. The gray street felt cold and rough on his feet, which were wet with some dirt and grass. How careless he was. As he reached the end of the street, a woman with short green hair stepped outside. "Oh, hello, are you Miss Vienna?" H asked waving. The door behind her was open; it would be her fault if intruders went in. "Now who are you, young child?" She asked casually. "Are you here for food? Many seem to take advantage of my surplus lately" A slight annoyance was detected in her tone. _Well someone's terse._He smiled nervously at her. "Is that rude?" he asked, ready to back away. "Oh no, you free to take a helping home with you! So what's your name kid?"

"My name's Oliver…you don't mind giving me food?" he said as if surprised. "Of course not! Here, I'll get you a bowl of stew."

"Umm…not to sound selfish, but do you have something slightly more portable?"

"Well, I do have some muffins and scones, if you would like that"

"I would **love** that!" His standards clearly were not that high when it came to foodstuffs. Vienna walked in for a few minutes, and then came back out with a small pot that had scones in it. Putting on the cover, she told him to return it when done.

"It's the least I could do! Thanks so much!" They both smiled.

"Well, I'll be going!" He went his way back to the pier.

_Well aren't those three gonna be happy when they see this!_Oliver opened the container, releasing a sweet scent. He held back his temptation to eat one, knowing that his sister would find out by simply glancing at the 'greasy look' of the pot. _Will they even be hungry?_ Down the street, he continued walking.

_Clack kli-klick!_The sound of a rock skidding was instantly caught in his ears. Oliver sharply turned to the right, only seeing the shadows cast by homes. Not even a moment later, the sound of someone charging was heard. Oliver turned around, only to receive a brutal blow to his gut. He let out a gagging cough; some traces of blood came out with the saliva. Without so much as a chance to know what—or who hit him, he landed on the ground; the pot clattered against the hard ground, relinquishing its scones, which were now scattered on the floor. His sight, becoming blurry as he lost consciousness, would only let him see two figures hovering on top of him.

After much time had passed, Oliver managed to wake up. He felt the cold floor before anything else, shivering before showing attempts to get up. The shivering made Oliver realize that his arms and legs were bound to one another, also…he was _naked?_ He thought to himself about who would possibly do this. The room he was trapped in was very dark. The windows were sealed, barely letting any light in it. Oliver looked for any broken glass that could be a ticket to freedom, but this place must have 'tided up' just for him. Ending his confusion, and adding to his frustration, Heinrick opened the door, his smug grin too obnoxious for Oliver to stand.

"_Who the hell are you, and why did take me here?_"

Thanks for making it this far...is my story boring? I don't seem to be getting any reviews...  
>Just one or two will, do...if anyone's reading this.<p>

*goes to take a nap*


	7. Chapter 7: Affliction of the Innocent

_Thank all that have actually read this far...it really makes me feel appreciated!  
>_<em>

_"Good Evening, Miss Vienna, you look jus' as lovely as your cooking!" Vienna, as always, was disgusted with that smug smile he used to greet her. "Aw, shut up and go eat!" _

_"Thank you..." he walked in her dining room to see that Dylan and their planned 'Oliver' had been waiting for him, both of their plates were nearly empty."I have to look for my garden tools, so no funny business __**Heinrick**__" she stared him down as if he were the only one planning something malicious. If only she knew..."__So kid, continue this 'plan' you have set up__" Dylan whispered to Henry Lou. "__Well, it's not a master plan, but it's sure to work__.__" _

_"__Well, spill it__!__"_ _Heinrick appeared a little too eager for this._ "You should both know very well that Oliver is well known for stealing, since it's necessary for his survival..."

"_**And?**_"_ both of the older men said simultaneously; the irked expressions showed they very well understood._

"**'And'**... because of that, my gut instinct is telling me that he'll come here. **IF** he comes, we can ambush him; I'll 'do the job', whatever it is, quicker, and we'll all be on our marry way!"

"_Except that_ _little bastard_!"_ Heinrick smiled devilishly._ "That only leaves one issue unsolved...What's my job specifically?"

"Come to think of it...what is the plan?" _Dylan asked._

"How could you NOT know? Aren't you the one that hired me?" Henry Lou eyed his 'employer' with questioning eyes.

"I be the brains here kid" _Heinrick stated_. "Your job is to impersonate Oliver, and commit a crime for which he'll be framed. Pretty simple?"

"Very...and now that the plan is set I simply have to wait for the right time" He hurriedly finished the discussion once he heard knocking on the door, followed by _Vienna saying 'I'll get it'._

_ Heinrick began to eat his stew to add to the 'casualty' (and his stomach). How convenient it would be if that were Oliver there...Henry left to out his plate away. Then he faked the action of going upstairs, but was really eavesdropping tying to figure out who was with Ms. Greene._

"_My name's Oliver" was all he needed to hear so he could signal Heinrick. The two went through the back garden where she grew her fruits and vegetables (since she grew flowers in the front)._

_ The two waited very patiently, knowing that Oliver had to take this direction to get near the pier. Henry Lou's highly trained ears detected Oliver's faint footsteps and humming. Knowing that he had to act quickly, he scanned the floor quickly, took a small rock off the ground, and told Heinrick to wait for the signal. Amused by how careless his target was, Henry Lou had let out a little giggle as the rock skid across the small street. Heinrick correctly guessed that was the signal, and lunged up to Oliver, dealing him a blow that appeared so painful, that Henry Lou had felt his stomach imagining the pain, and then walked over once Oliver had clearly lost most of his consciousness. He stared down at his 'prey' while he finally shut his eyes. Small traces of blood and spit were on the ground, coming from his mouth._

_"Wasn't that a little bit of overkill? You don't need a sledgehammer to kill a fly."_

_"Eh...that's a stubborn fly we have here, so I needed to do that..." Heinrick joked._

_"Whatever, anyhow, let's act quick..."_

"I said WHO ARE YOU?" It was apparent Oliver was completely ignoring his position as he said that. "Well, I figured you'd forget me. Does this ring a bell?" While keeping that awful grin, he tossed a knife in front of Oliver, but not so close that he could reach it. Oliver stared at this knife with placid intensity. Every detail sending him memories: The polished brown wood, with the yellow trademark of Heinrick's former job, and the slight upward curve at the tip of the blade. "You...you're that merchant that **stabbed my sister**?"

"And I happen ta' be the one whose career ya' **ruined**" Heinrick spat down, missing Oliver by a taunting few inches. Sensations of disgust went through his whole body. "So what now? Are you trying to get some type of 'revenge'? What gain could that possibly give you?"

"If I did it **m'self**,I guess no gain would be with me; that's the reason this feller right here be my...'weapon'..."

"''Weapon'_? I'm doing all the work__**HEINRICK**_" a young voice, perfectly imitating Oliver's, spoke before its owner entered the room. "Not that I'm complaining...since you've _**paid**_" Henry Lou smirked down at Oliver's face, filled with mixed expressions. "What? Do I not look wonderful in your clothes?" continuing to mock Oliver's voice, Henry Lou adjusted the clothes for a slightly better fit.

"Are you comfortable? I hope you are, since you'll be here for a little while..."

"How can I, who's freezing my bare butt on a cold, hard floor, **possibly** be comfortable?"

"Rhetorical question of course!" Henry had said in his normal voice, while seeing Oliver was fidgeting in he ropes that bound him. "Remind Dylan to make those tighter before we leave..." he said facing Heinrick."What are you going to do in my clothes anyway?" Oliver asked his tone questionable.

Henry Lou had let out a small yawn, and bent down. He picked up the knife before facing Oliver once again, now having a devilish smile. "I'm just gonna say hi to your friends, what else would I do?" He paused. "Seriously, what else would I be doing? You've been exposed to this reality at least once Oliver..." Henry Lou and Heinrick walked out of the room, leaving the boy with sudden realization and panic. He tried to shoot up, but immediately fell down with no grace, _Damn it, these stupid ropes!_He dragged and rolled himself until he reached the door, desperate to give his friends some kind of warning, even it was a mere shout. Before Oliver could struggle up to a sitting position against the door, Dylan had swiftly opened it, unaware of the attempted escape, but he realized it quickly when Oliver grunted along with the _bang_ sound that was made. Oliver had made a small hiss of pain, for splinters made an unwanted presence on his skin. "How sad, did you honestly think fleeing will be as easy as it was in the past? Tough luck."

"You too?" Oliver asked while backing away, avoiding to press on his splinters. "Why wouldn't I? Your constant thieving is lessening the profit of me and my workers' families, and quite frankly, the injuries they received took away any pity or remorse I would've had for you."

"Regardless of what you think of me, WHY WOULD YOU INVOLVE MY FRIENDS IN THIS?" THEY HAVEN'T DONE **ANYTHING** TO DESERVE HARM!"

"Oh, they've done plenty..."

"What?"

"They've been your allies..."

"I've been working alone for years! I just share food with them! Whatever you plan on doing, just leave them alone and **do it to me**!" he now seemed to be begging, tears slowly beginning to form. "Don't worry, things will be done to you pretty soon, just wait" Dylan had leaned down to tighten Oliver ropes, but the boy planted his teeth on Dylan's arm in protest, the pressure rapidly growing stronger. The man let out a shout and pulled his arm away and covered the now bleeding part of his arm. "You _stupid_ **son of a BITCH!**" Dylan lost his temper completely and began stomping his foot, with growing force, on the boy, who remained silent during the beating.

"...Heinrick" Henry Lou said in an almost solemn tone.

"Yes?"

"The specific goal is for me to harm them and frame Oliver in the process, but what is preventing me from getting caught?"

"I will...if one of the brats try to escape, they will deal with me, but I doubt they'll get far..." he reassured the young criminal, who held a tight grip on the half-empty pot with scones.

"Ainsley! Where the heck is that stupid brother of mine?" Olivia demanded while holding onto her growling stomach.

"He said he would be back with food, so let's just wait!" Ainsley said, tired of her friend's complaining. Deep inside, she was worrying. _It's been nearly an hour? Could something have happened? Maybe If I had gone with him, I could've been sure. I doubt he would be killed or put in a prison though. He must be goofing off somewhere._ A few minutes had passed, and there was finally knocking at the door. Noah ran up to the door with an eager stomach. Olivia told him to stop and wait, but the password 'Revilo' reassured that it was safe. Olivia nodded for Noah to open the door, and he did with a beaming smile towards the dwelling's breadwinner. "Hi guys!" Oliver said. "I'm sorry for being late. Ms. Greene invited me for dinner, and I couldn't resist"

"You jerk!" Olivia yelled jokingly.

"At least you brought some back..."Ainsley said. Noah jumped a little bit in front of Oliver. "Can I have some now? I'm really hungry~!"

"Of course!" he smiled, lowering the pot for Noah.

"Yay~!" he let out, taking a bite into the scone he grabbed. Ainsley and Olivia came over and took a few scones themselves before sitting back down in their corners. Oliver had another scone in hand to give to Noah, who was happily holding out his hands to receive it. "Here you go!" Oliver said.

The scone fell on the floor, and a few drops of blood followed suit. Then, some tears fell from Noah's face, right before he began crying. "Hey! What did you just-?" All Olivia actually saw was 'Oliver' pulling the bloodied knife out of Noah's forearm. The five-year old crumpled on the floor holding his bleeding injury, his tears unceasing. "**OLIVER**, WHAT THE HELL?" Olivia grew very tense, her arm now searching for the knives Oliver had found days ago. Oliver had only let out a quiet and sinister laugh, licking some off the blood of the blade. He had stepped over Noah, his expression filled with blood-lust; Olivia held out a knife that she had just found an instant ago. In response, her brother pointed his weapon at her, edging closer and closer. Ainsley had foolishly tried to be a peacemaker again. "**Stop it! This is way too out of hand!**" Her voice filled with fear, she stood in front of Olivia, whose expression was turning as deadly as the situation. "Ainsley, get out of here..."Olivia said strictly."I can't just let you two fight! We have to use something at a bandage for No**AH-!**" her gasp of pain virtually echoed in the small room. She quickly backed away, not wanting anymore harm, holding her bleeding side. That once glance at Ainsley's hurt and tearful expression was the last straw for Olivia.

"You...BASTARD!" she lunged toward him, dealing him a sharp blow to the left with her elbow. Oliver had fallen to the floor, giggling with madness. "You're so _**FUN**_ aren't you~?" He got up almost like a zombie. "How about we play a _**game**_ now?" He lunged himself at Olivia, his blade aimed perfectly at Olivia's chest. She feinted left and sliced at his side, only damaging some cloth. He kicked back at her, and she rolled up back into a stance. Ainsley was watching this whole scene as Noah continued his pain-filled weeping. The two knives sliced and clanged against each other, while the users of the weapons had went in nearly every direction of the room, knocking over the boxes that had the clothes. He tried to stab her again, leaving an opening. She then kicked him where it hurt most, making him curse. Olivia knew she had only one opportunity to stop this fight, so she let her instincts take over. Just when he looked about ready to fight again she had shoved him; he took a few steps back. _No hesitation, No hesitation..!_ He looked at the determined girl, his eyes wide with shock. She raised the knife and stabbed him.

** "AAAGGHH!" **Oliver let out a screech so loud. It made the man waiting outside nervous, but he did not move yet. Olivia took a few steps back, looking at the bloodied blade she held, then back at Oliver, whose left eye was covered with his hand, blood was seeping through. He glared at her with such hatred with his remaining eye. It appeared to be the last straw for him now. Without the slightest warning, he took his knife and tackled her aiming for the kill. Somehow, Olivia managed to block his hand, and her knife was pressed against his neck. "Oh, so you have enough guts to stab your brother twice?" he said, purposely leaning his head against the knife, letting blood drip from his neck. _Too much...blood!_ Her hand trembled slightly; he let out a successful, sinister smirk. "Pathetic" he whispered, smacking the blade out of her hand. "You never hesitate when in a fight...it'll get you killed" He started to put his blade down toward her, but she put all her strength in forcing it back. _Why is this happening? Are my friends just going to kill each other? If this doesn't stop, Noah will bleed to death, and I'll follow suit..._

Ainsley had leaned over and fell on her stomach, still holding onto her wound as if to slow down the bleeding. "Please...just stop this! This is too much...have you gone insane?" she yelled weakly. "I agree this has too stop!" 'Oliver' snickered "I've grown tired of this one" He said as Olivia's hands gave in, tears were in her eyes, and the blade was pressed roughly against her neck. "Let's just say that **this **was for my eye!"

"**NoooO!**" Ainsley had let out a piercing scream, despite her hoarse voice. She closed her eyes in the mental state of pure horror as the choking sounds of Olivia's voice came and went. Tears had immediately fallen from Ainsley's face, nonstop. "You...Why did you do **this**..."

"Because I was paid" The boy stood up over Olivia's body, not caring to avoid the blood seeping out of her neck. "You...**traitor**...lousy...good-for-nothing traitor..." Her conscious had faded, and he flipped her over to finish the job. "That's enough..." Heinrick had said. "One of hem needs to be alive for the rest of it to go well"

"What about the little green haired boy?" Henry Lou withdrew the bloody knife. "Oh please!" Heinrick had violently kicked the body in the gut; there was no response. "Blood did the job for you with this one. That girl kept you so preoccupied; the boy jus' went out. Despite Heinrick's statement, Henry Lou checked both the pulse and the reflection of light from the eyes; he then confirmed death. "We should head back to Dylan, right Heinrick?"

"Yes"


	8. Chapter 8: Indicted

It was near midnight. Every door was closed, and every light was out. The town's people slept away, completely unaware of anything that could possibly take place. The shed located by the pier was also silent, minus the snoring of Dylan. This continuous silence was bound to be broken soon, thanks to an impatient adolescent.

The door swung open, and Dylan nearly fell off the empty crate in response. "Dylan, we're ready to go" Henry Lou had whispered. "…Whoa, how many kids were there? I didn't expect you to get that damaged…"

"It was one stupid girl that did all this to me. She paid for it with her life though, so no worries." Dylan stared at Henry Lou with fear in his eyes. He just spoke of murder so casually, and he wore evidence of his sins all over his body, yet he could look at a person as if he'd done nothing wrong. "I-I see… well…"

"Can you two hurry it up? We're setting up a crime to frame right now; there shouldn't be time for chatter!" Heinrick had swung the unconscious body over his shoulders before making his exit. "Dylan, grab that note"

"Note?"

"It's a note meant for Miss Vienna. Just a little help for your alibi." He pointed to the corner which had his clothes and a slip of paper "Grab the clothes too". Dylan picked them up, but did not read the note, ignoring his own curiosity. "…Well?" Henry Lou had stared at Dylan. "Let's go, shall we?" Dylan said following Heinrick's suit.

The three true criminals went back to the dwelling, which now had blood's odor. Dylan had to take a few steps back to process what he just saw: A lifeless little boy, with an arm that appeared sliced open, a bleeding black-haired girl lying on her stomach, and a slightly older blonde girl with the insides of her neck on display. He swallowed deeply, as if trying not to vomit then went back in.

"Well Dylan, did you have fun beating at the lad?" Heinrick asked as he placed Oliver down making note of the boy's bruises. "This is convenient really. These almost match some of my own injuries; he's just missing a few things…"

"What?" Dylan asked. "You seriously haven't noticed my 'beautiful' eye yet?" Henry Lou pointed at the red mess that once was his left eye, causing Dylan to run out of the area. "He'll never have a stomach for the crook's life" Heinrick snickered. "Agreed" Henry Lou said, taking out the knife which was drunk with the blood of innocence. "Move over, this needs to be done carefully…" the hired killer examined Oliver's neck to find the exact spot for a counterfeit wound. With the tip of his knife, Henry Lou 'sketched' a cut that matched the one on his neck.

Heinrick let the boy finish his work. The hired killer knew better than to simply stab Oliver's eye, for that would wake the prey. Instead, he took his fingers, opened the eyelid, and slowly added pressure. Heinrick stared at this young professional with a sick fascination as the eye popped out, and flinched once Henry Lou had swiftly yanked it out, causing blood to drip from the tip of it. "Here, catch" The eyeball was thrown at Heinrick who panicked and caught it, unfortunately squishing it in the process. "Throw that away"

"Gladly…" Heinrick rushed out. Henry Lou put his attention back on Oliver. First, He stripped off his disguise and 'returned it'. Once the clothes were back on Oliver properly, Henry Lou placed the knife in his hands, and positioned the body near his dead sister in a way that could be believed in a crime scene.

The two men returned to see Henry Lou's bare body. "The clothes" he said, holding out his hand. Dylan tossed them in response, and in a matter of minutes, Henry Lou was clothed. "I've spent my time here. Give Ms. Greene my thanks. If I don't return soon,_**he'll**_ be mad at me." Henry Lou shuddered with the cowardice he had when the two first met him._Does Andy really put that much fear in him_? "Also, you should skim over the letter to help yourselves fabricate some sort of alibi" Henry Lou had left the two men standing there without saying goodbye, not that the three had any 'special bond' besides business for him to say anything. His main priority was to simply get away with murder and return to his tyrant for some feeble attempt of a 'reward'.

"So what does that note say?" Heinrick asked his cousin. "To sum it all up…the lad pretended to be his father, claiming that his son ran away, and thanking the one who kept his son healthy. May I add how damn good this kid's handwriting is?"

"You just did…so, do you have any idea on how we can accuse him of murder without being suspicious ourselves?"

"Leave that to me and my fellow merchants! After all, a ship is coming in early this morning…"

"Damn, why does some crew have to come here at the crack of dawn?" A merchant yawned. "Simply to piss us off?" another one of them had joked. "I'd gladly kick the captain's balls and risk my job if that were the case!" the first merchant laughed. The group of merchants was laying out what would become that ship's cargo. "At least we get paid for this" a third merchant said. "After all, we're almost done anyway-!" He had accidently bumped into one of the barrels, causing it to fall and roll over a series of rocks. "Shit!" Three merchants ran after the barrel, which had enough momentum to roll under the pier. "Thank God it didn't break!"

"Hey, do you guys smell anything funny?" one of the men asked. The three guys followed the smell, and found its source. Two of them ran as they shouted for help. _That took even faster than I had hoped_…Dylan followed the shouts, and Heinrick followed Dylan.

There were many things that made Oliver uncomfortable as he woke up. First, the aches and bruises from Dylan beating him. Then, there was a sharp pain on his neck. Thirdly, the horrible ache from his empty eye socket was horribly unbearable. Finally, the indistinct murmuring of people haunted his thoughts while he grew conscious. He opened his eye to see someone was carrying a person out of wherever he was. He fully opened his remaining eye to realize one of them was missing. _How could that happen?_ He got up despite his physical pain, only to see the most traumatizing image in his life: Olivia and Noah, his sister and close friend, dead, surrounded by blood, and their slashed parts almost made him want to scream. Instead, he let out the little food he had eaten the previous day on the floor. He looked for Ainsley, but could not see her. Thus, he decided to try and walk outside, thinking things could not get much worse. How wrong he was proven as the door opened, and a man he did not know shouted: "There's the murderer!"

"What?" Oliver had practically croaked. No matter how far he would go to get food, he would never kill, especially not those he practically considered family. Before he would defy the statement, the same man had dragged Oliver out, to be seen by an abnormally large amount of people, who were having their discussions while occasionally looking back at him with disgust. At that moment, he noticed the knife in his hand, covered with blood. He threw the object that made him feel damned as far away as he could. "Don't you dare try to act out again!" A more familiar, and much more hated, voice had shouted. Oliver's head was shoved down onto the ground, and some sand went into his mouth. He coughed out "Heinrick!", but no one could tell. _As far as I know, Ainsley's not dead, so where is__she?_Oliver looked from his awkward angle and saw his only living friend being bandaged by some of the local women.

_Ainsley, can you tell me what's going on?_ He had wanted to say, but he knew reality enough to know that now would not be the best time to ask questions. A man in uniform walked up to Heinrick and Oliver's accuser. "Can you tell me what happened?"

"Well…" Dylan had started, after appearing from virtually nowhere. "My workers were laying out the cargo for the ship which arrived moments ago. One of the clumsy ones knocked over one of the barrels, and that led to them walking in on the scenario causing such fear in our townspeople right now. There were four bodies found. Two: dead and remain in that room, and the other two are out here with us."

"One of them being 'Ainsley Harris', a now 9-year-old girl that had been missing for two years" This authority figure added. "This child's name is Oliver, according to Ainsley, and there is no other piece of information on him."

"Besides the fact that he is the accused" Dylan said. "Even though that's obvious"

"I didn't do anything..." Oliver said, rising in volume "Ainsley, can't you tell them it wasn't me?" The young girl looked at him, as if trying to hide her hurt and disgusted look. Her eyes sparkled with surfacing tears as she looked down at him. "How could I possibly tell them that when I saw them being killed by you with my own eyes?"

_How could she possibly say that? I couldn't even hurt Noah, and at the very least I wouldn't kill Olivia...Oh wait, she thinks it is me because of that boy, but we barely look alike besides our hair! Was it the darkness that helped? This means everyone thinks I'm a murderer now!_

"That wasn't me though Ainsley" he said, trying to remain composed. "Who else could it have possibly been?" she said. "I also thought 'what would possibly make you do this?' several times as I saw the life in Noah's eyes fade, and as your sister bled… Could you possibly answer that? We were friends weren't we? The four of us acted like close siblings after all…" Tears began to form in her eyes. "Whatever made you betray that, I'll never understand…!" Ainsley swiftly turned away, not caring to hold back her cries. Every statement that she made had pierced at his heart. "I would never…" He whispered as he trailed off.

'_Kill them'… They were family to me, even more than those two who I can barely remember! I loved them like any other sibling too… That's why I went through the trouble of feeding you all at night. Me? Kill a five-year-old and my sister? It's not my fault! Please stop looking at me, all of you! Even the kids I played with look at me as if I were a monster…Does my missing eye add to their fear? Is it the bruises that I received from that man who's accusing me? I…it is my fault_. Tears now began to fall from his eye, gradually increasing to the point he felt blind. The men began to take him away. _I shouldn't have let my guard down that night…I shouldn't have went to Ms. Greene's house. I…should've just been happy being a hermit with the people I care about! Why, just why? Tell me God… after all I remember learning about you…_

"For what reason did this happen?" He looked out the barred window of his cell, his eye still red with tears. This cycle of thought, along with those traumatizing images, had kept him possessed for days, and he could not even tell. If it wasn't for his loyal pet bird chirping through the bars, he would still be trapped in his unseen chains of misery. The sight of James flying into the lowly prison cell lifted his drowned spirit, and helped it cling to sanity. "James…!" Oliver had lifted his hand for his pet to perch on his finger. "How have you been? It must have been difficult to eat without me…"

"What are you yapping about boy?" The watchman stared down at his only convict. "Nothing, I'm just talking to James, my pet…"

"How sad can ya' be?" He laughed. "A bird! Talking to a bird? I guess I must not be worth talking to!" The watchman slid the bowl into the cell, letting the some of the soup in it spill. "That's because you don't seem very nice" Oliver stated indifferently. "_**I**_don't seem nice? This is coming from an accused killer?" The watchman began to laugh again. "Well, I wish you luck in court!" The man had continued his laughter as he left for the night.

_Why would I even bother defending myself? I have no proof of anything that could be used as defense, and even if I do come out innocent…What would I go back to? The parents I barely knew wouldn't want back only one son who 'killed his sister',__my__circle of friends evaporated, and all that remains is hatred and guilt._

"_**If**_I get the chance, I'll just wait until I'm released, then I'll prove my name once I've acquired enough knowledge. Does that seem like a good idea James?" The bird turned its head suddenly, and then flew over to the soup bowl. _Is that his way of encouraging me?_Oliver stood up for the first time in a while to eat the soup, not realizing how hungry he was until he took the first bite. He finished the bowl, fairly quickly, and lay down on the floor to sleep. His bird watched over him until he finally drifted off to slumber.

_For how long have I been sitting?_ Ainsley had thought to herself as she sat on the chair which now taunted her "Wait on the chair right here, he said. How much longer will I have to wait?" She began to display the typical child's 'patience'. A woman opened the door, but Ainsley could not tell who it was from the distance. "Is she really here?" A voice further away had said. The woman facing Ainsley began to smile deeply and radiantly, and Ainsley stared at her with mixed feelings. "Hello, mother, how are you?"


	9. Chapter 9: Promise

"Ainsley, my dear Ainsley…" Her mother did not waste any time heading to embrace her lost daughter. "Do you have any idea how worried I've been for these past two years? I never thought you would go out of your way as to abandon your home at the tender age of seven…" At this point, Ainsley's feet were dangling in the air. "Please, don't ever do that again!" Priscilla Harris had a reputation for shedding tears, and it was proven even more so as she held her daughter tightly. '_No promises…'_Ainsley had wanted to say so badly at the time, but she knew better than to add insult to injury.

"Now don't hog our child Priscilla!" The man behind her had said. "I'm sorry Nathaniel; it's just that…I'm so happy…" It was now the father's turn to carry Ainsley. The recent emotional trauma made her less resilient to being treated like a child. She had even let herself fall asleep as the carriage took her to her original home, in her mother's lap. Little did she know that her father had stayed behind to discuss the chain of events which took place. "Some thief named Oliver dared to stab my child?"

"Please, sir, calm down. The buildings here ain't protected at this hour, and I don't want anyone to know I'm here" The 'watchman' had said trying to shush the young tycoon. "Don't tell me you're afraid of an 'Oliver' coming after you!"

"Contrary, I would love if one came, I would bash him down with joy"

"That is quite the absurd humor you have there, sir…" Nathaniel backed away a few steps. "Aw, don't be that way! You can call me Heinrick! A watchman really isn't that much of a respected position…unless you're a convict."

"I'll respect you…" Nathaniel got closer to Heinrick, placing something in his hands. "After all…you watching over the filth that tried to kill my precious daughter are you not? I would hope that this is good enough thanks?"

"'Thanks'? Err…well, good night, we both better get going!" Heinrick waved before leaving the room. He heard a quiet 'I'll see you' from Nathaniel. He headed towards Dylan's place for a drink, jubilant since Oliver's arrest._What__was that thing Nat gave__me?_ He pulled out the small, yet bursting pouch. When the small bag gave way, a few coins fell out, and were immediately picked up by Heinrick._This…cash! My God, I've never seen so much at once! Hell, I can stop begging with this amount!__Time to head to Dylan's__place__and celebrate!_

Back at the 'prison', which wasn't very well organized, Nathaniel faced Oliver with a vacant facial expression. Oliver, the boy indicted of double murder, returned his unsure, yet intimidating glance. James broke this tension by flying into Oliver's cell, chirping. "Anyway…" Nathaniel began to speak. "I came here for two reasons: to help you and to set you straight" Oliver held back his laugh. _Help? How could the man that is Ainsley's father want to help me?_He though while recalling the earlier conversation he eavesdropped.

"My instincts tell me that you haven't done anything to be here." The man said turning away. "I guess you instantly became hated once you and blood were seen in the same place though"

"At least one person believes me…" Oliver had accidently said aloud, causing Nathaniel to look at him again. "Just those few words cheered you up?" He chuckled. "Wait until you here the rest!"

Nathaniel crouched down so he could see the child eye to eye. "Just by looking at you during the time of the trial, I could tell that you're only real guilt was being accused. That forlorn and pale look made it far too obvious that you were traumatized by the deaths of those two… There's no way you could have killed them." He paused, noticing developing tears, and then quickly changed the subject. "That yelling you more than likely heard from me was just an act. My own reputation may have been ruined if I showed pity towards you. Contrary to what I said, I'm willing to help you clear your name" Oliver had perked up while wiping his tears away. "Do you really mean it?"

"Of course I do, a man always keeps his word!" Both of them smiled. "There is one catch: I can't be caught helping you, for multiple reasons."

"That's understandable…how exactly can you prove me innocent though?"

"You're contributing to this too"

"How? I'm locked up in a cell, in a prison, controlled by a town of people who now fear and despise me!"

"Jeez, I don't mean that much…" Nathaniel let out a sigh, before asking: "Can you explain what happened as detailed as you possibly can?"

"Well…" Oliver began. "I'm not quite sure where to start…"

"If you're not sure, then start at the beginning…"

"Okay… It all began when…"

Nathaniel stood up once Oliver was finished. "I asked for you to tell me what happened, not for your life story"

"I'm sorry…"

"No, it's okay; you're a pretty good storyteller for someone your age. Plus, I have a good idea on what may have happened, along with why Ainsley ran away from her mother and me. I can't do anything significant at the moment, but if I use my connections correctly…"

"Then what?" Oliver asked eagerly for the first time in what seemed like forever. "_Then…_ I could reopen this case, and prove your innocence. That way you can live on your life, or 'start over', if you must. Anyway, I must head home, or my wife will be worried…" Oliver watched Nathaniel walk to the end of the hallway. "Oh…wait!"

"Yes?" Nathaniel turned around. "Why do you want to help me? What benefit would it do you?" Oliver asked Nathaniel, his depressing nature had fully resurfaced. "Is that not what a fellow human being would do? I doubt I would live with myself, knowing that an innocent, young child is in jail as I enjoy that fancy lifestyle everyone seems to envy." _Really?_Oliver thought._I figured there would be a more selfish motive behind this rich person's deeds. That is what they tend to do…however, I am in no position to refuse this offer._ "A fellow human being, eh?" Oliver began to lie down to sleep. "Don't make me laugh now…those kinds of beings are exactly why I'm in here."

The young man looked at him through light-brown eyes, which Ainsley must have inherited, with pity. "Don't think of it that way kid…there is still hope in mankind…have a good night's rest"

"On a cold, hard…floor…" Oliver replied, drifting off into sleep. _Just how much have they gone through these two years? This boy's mind seems to be five times more poisoned compared to me when I was his age…_Ainsley's seemingly pure father had closed the door, leaving the building in its gloomy silence.


	10. Chapter 10: Inquiry

The sun shined luminously, despite the demoralizing days that preceded it. The sky was clear, only showing its boundless light-blue color. Ainsley had been staring at it for the past hour, still in her nightgown, under the parasol that was purchased on her 9th birthday.

"Ainsley…stop doing that, you may hurt your eyes" One of the service maids had placed down a glass of water and apple slices. "Oh, really?" Ainsley said turning around. "Maybe I do want to hurt myself, after all…I never felt like I belonged here" The young girl sat on the white, wooden chair and began to eat her snack. The maid stood there silently, not knowing how she could possibly respond. Ainsley's current pessimistic nature was so ill-sounding compared to her jubilant days as a toddler; it almost put fear into those around her. "What is the current status on my father's return?"

"He should be home within this hour!" The maid replied suddenly, more alert with her concern. The child responded to this statement with a grin; it cheered up her maid despite being phony.

As the maid exited, Priscilla entered her child's room. "It's good to see you awake! Are you enjoying the snack?"

"Yes!" Ainsley responded with content contradicting her earlier mood. "That's good…" Her mother spoke with a noticeable amount of relief. _She must still be worried over my injury… I hardly even feel it now…_ "Ainsley!" Her mother interrupted her train of thought. "I am taking you to the nurse"

"So you are worried" Ainsley said confirming her thoughts. "What kind of parent would I be if I wasn't?" Priscilla took her daughter's hand and walked her down two levels of their home until they reached Nurse Hannah's room. "Good Day, Milady!" Hannah smiled. Ainsley stared at Hannah with a 'Déjà vu' type of feeling. The nurse looked down at her and her eyes opened wide with disbelief. "Miss Ainsley? It's been so long! Where have you been?"

"How could you not know about her return? That news was buzzing for hours without end." Priscilla said bemused at her servant's unawareness. Hannah had paid no attention to the 'lady of the house', and was still inspecting Ainsley. "So that's the reason why you're here" She said, poking at the developing scar on Ainsley's side. "No reaction…it must not hurt that badly…"

"It doesn't hurt at all!" Ainsley smiled. "Can I leave now?"

"No, you are going to have that ghastly scrape checked further! Miss Hannah, if she gives you any difficulties…"

"She won't and she knows it" Hannah said bluntly, but not to be rude. What she said was true though. Hannah is a very confusing (scary) person to be around at times, for she may act bipolar while treating injuries. Ainsley lives in fear of ever being treated while Hannah is on her 'angry side'.

Nearly six hours have passed since Nathaniel made his arrangement with Oliver. Since then, he had been thinking on where to start with this investigation. _Miss Vienna Greene seems to be a good place to start off…After all; the real drama began to happen once he left her house…What do I do about this 'other boy' Oliver began to talk about? This is terrible, I need more leads, but I have to work with what I have._ "Welcome back Lord Harris" multiple servants had greeted Nathaniel as he entered the household. "I'm glad to be back" he said only to the last one. Even though he said he was happy to be home, his face displayed an abnormal amount of stress. Maybe I can find another lead in my own home. "Where are my daughter and Priscilla?"

"Most recently, your daughter has been seen in Nurse Hannah's office" said the same maid who was serving Ainsley before she headed there. "Thanks"

"Calm down a little bit, won't you?" Hannah became slightly frustrated at Ainsley's hissing. "But it hurts!" responded Ainsley as Hannah continued rubbing alcohol at the wound which supposedly 'didn't hurt at all'. "There, I'm done!" Hannah took a few steps back, "I'll just get some bandages now…"

"Before you do that, let me see something!"

"What? Why…Lord Harris?"

"I need to see something…" Nathaniel looked down at his daughters cut, and examined its details the best he could; then he stood back up. "So it wasn't as bad as I thought it might be"

"Of course, I have been tending to it for the past ten minutes. It took a little while, but she is finally ready for bandages."

"Thank you for your hard work Ms. Hannah"

"It's no problem at all!" She smiled at Nathaniel. "Well I'll be leaving…" He headed to his bedroom, so he could have some more time to relax and think. _Ainsley's attacker must have been left handed! The cut started from slightly past her right side, and it ended partially in front of her stomach growing deeper! I think it's safe to assume he was facing her…If he had attacked her from behind, the part of the cut closer to her back would have been deeper instead. _Interrupting his train of thought, Priscilla came over and embraced her husband. "What have you been doing all night? You had me worrying that you may have been…" Nathaniel kissed her before she could finish that statement; she returned that kiss with slightly more passion. "I would never do that...whatever you're talking about..." Nathaniel said to reassure his wife and relive her of her concerns. That way, he could focus on _his_ concerns. "Oh, well...never mind, it was silly of me to get flustered..." Priscilla turned away, blushing. It has been so long since he had even touched her, let alone kissed her, so she was not sure how to react.

_That worked even better than I had hoped... Now what was I thinking about again?_ Nathaniel put on his 'business' face as he simultaneously thought and walked to his room_. If I remember well enough, Oliver is right-handed; at least I'll assume that since the little bird always rests on his right hand. Now for 'that boy'...I don't have the slightest clue who he could be. I should send someone to that town and interview this 'Ms. Greene' Oliver spoke of._ "Oh, wait...They're all in the kitchen area...and I'm up here. I don't feel like walking down again." He groaned before recalling he had a dumbwaiter. To get his servant to come up, he would simply write a note and send it down. Maybe he would ring the bell as the dumbwaiter went down, that would get their attention. "Master, I'm here"

"Eh, what?" Nathaniel quickly turned around, dropping the bell in embarrassment. "Your promptness amazes me once again, Aaron"

"It is only natural that I come quickly?" Aaron responded. "I need you to do something, and that may take a while, of not your whole day" Nathaniel began.

"What is that?"

"I need you to take a trip to the town that I just came back from; you must ask around for a woman named 'Vienna Greene'. Once you have found her, ask her the following questions on this paper." Nathaniel ordered while giving Aaron the slip of paper. "Also, you must write down what she says, word for word."

"Understood Master, I'll be on my way"

As Aaron rode to the town alone, he wondered why he was requested to do something so suddenly. Yes, he is the Lord's most trusted servant, but still..._I'd much rather be cooking..._The civilians of the town looked at him as he passed through in the buggy given to him. Aaron could sense some sort of tension in their expressions; he could also took notice on how parents watched very carefully over their children, as if something could go wrong at any moment. Since the adults looked too tense, he decided to ask a younger person if they knew where 'Vienna Greene' lived. "Of course I know where Miss Greene is! She's the nicest lady ever, after my Mother, of course!" the young boy had started. "She lives at the end of this street here!"

"Thank you so much... Kyo?"

"You must be the first to say my name right..." Kyo said somewhat shocked. "Anyway, I want to play now...bye, sir!"

"Goodbye" Aaron walked to the end of the street where Kyo was referring to. A young, Green-haired woman was tending to plants in front of the house. "Good day, Madam. Are you Miss Vienna?" The young woman sharply looked up. "…Yes, I am. Why do you ask?"

"Well you see…I have orders from my master, or 'boss', that I must question you on certain topics"

"What topics?" Ms. Greene asked Aaron suspiciously. _Even the 'nicest lady ever' seems to be somewhat tense_. "I'm not aware of those topics yet myself…they are written on this paper" Aaron said as he began to read. "It says to 'go somewhere more private', so I'm presuming that this information will be considered 'classified'."

"I guess I can stop tending to my garden for one day…Why not come inside?"

The two sat across the table, facing each other, as Aaron began to speak. "Before I question you, I would like to introduce myself. My name is Aaron Harris, the adopted son and servant of Nathaniel Harris. He is the one who told me to question you."

"Can we go through this quickly?" Vienna asked, not being given a good impression. "Sure, I would like to go home quickly myself" Aaron cleared his throat. "What do you know so far about the murders that took place here?"

"…! Well, I know that a young boy named Oliver was the accused, and the two killed were his sister and friend." Aaron began to jot her words down.

"How do you know 'Oliver' and the other kids who were once with them?"

"That group of kids… grew very popular in a short amount of time. Many of the other children would talk about how they got to 'play with them today'. Oliver specifically…he visited my house not even a day before the murders occurred." As Aaron was about to ask the next question, he was a little stumped on how to deliver it.

"Umm…Have there been…'other young boys' around Oliver's age that came over to your house?"

_Around Oliver's age…What could he mean by that?_ "There was a boy that lived in my home for about…two days. If I remember correctly, his name is 'Henry Lou'. The odd thing is that I don't recall him telling me his name. I only heard it by eavesdropping on one of his conversations with two men."

"Who are those two men?"

"…Heinrick and Dylan McCarter. Heinrick's an unemployed bum, and Dylan is a successful, local merchant."

"Was there anything that seemed 'strange' about those few days?" Aaron didn't appear to be reading off the paper anymore. "The day Henry Lou was brought over to my house was a little strange. Heinrick and Dylan brought him over, claiming he was an abandoned child. The boy sure looked like it, but I still thought it was weird. Heinrick is not the type to do good for children."

"Why?"

Vienna explained what happened on the day Heinrick got fired. Aaron listened with as much intent as he could. "By chance, who were those two young thieves?"

"I don't know…"

"Oh…well, do you know where Henry Lou is now?" Aaron asked, ready to wrap up this interview. "That was another strange thing…He practically disappeared…the same day as the murder, and the two men I talked about gave me a letter."

"May I see the letter?" Vienna answered 'yes' right before she went to get it. The moment she gave it to him, he skimmed through the letter's contents_. This letter…seems to be fabricated. What father would take a child from a home near the middle of the night, without saying a word as well? Why would he use a letter instead of speaking to Miss Vienna anyway?_

"Thank you… This conversation has been helpful...I'll take my leave now."

"Here! Take some scones to help you on your way back!" Ms. Greene said before he got on his buggy. _Well, I am kind of hungry..._

Aaron, who knew nothing about this case at first, suddenly wanted to be an investigator in it. However, it was getting too dark for him to stay any longer. He ate some of Miss Vienna's scones as he rode away back to his master's home_. If I don't hurry, I'll miss dinner and cleanup._ The typically busy mansion was quiet; not a single servant or maid was out there. To add to the unforeseen circumstances, Nathaniel was waiting outside for Aaron. Upon seeing this, Aaron rushed up until he was facing Nathaniel, and got off the buggy. "Master! How long were you waiting for me? You shouldn't do so in this weather, it can cause a cold!"

"Now, now...don't worry so much, I should be worrying about you. You took very long, and you missed dinner"

"I'm so sorry!" Aaron bowed his head, only to get it patted. "You act far more like a servant than my son, you know that?"

"I'm sorry Master-"

"Father"

"...Father"

"Anyway, can you please hand me over the 'results'?"

"Of course!" Aaron took several folded papers out of his pocket, unfolded them, and then handed each one over to Nathaniel. Nathaniel looked over each paper, taking his time so that he could absorb each detail. He let out a satisfied smirk once he finished reading. "You did a good job kid!" Nathaniel said while patting on Aaron's head again."Mas-Father, can you please stop doing that?"

"Nope, I'm too happy! Anyway, let's head back in."

"Right..." Aaron followed Nathaniel back inside, noticing that Hannah right behind the entrance. "You two took so long! I though you would come right in, so I was holding the door..."

"I'm sorry Miss Hannah!" Aaron said. Nathaniel continued walking.

"Hey, Aaron, what did master make you do?" Hannah whispered to him. Aaron was hesitant to answer. "Umm...I had to interview someone..."

"On what?"

"Something that took place in another town...the one I came back from. The way he's acting, I assume he has some business there."

"I see...okay, bye. I'm turning in for the night" Hannah headed downstairs, to her bedroom. Without changing, she laid down on the bed, staring at the ceiling. "Business in another town?" She covered her eyes with one hand. "This could be both a great advantage and a difficulty...

…

I better act quickly then."


	11. Chapter 11: Liberated

_ Apparently, there was a boy of similar age to Oliver. He came and left right before the bodies were discovered; that is a clearly suspicious action. This boy also had discussions with two older men, which is clearly odd given their backgrounds. Knowing this much alone, it is very likely that the boy 'Henry Lou' was used as an Oliver impersonator; he must have killed those other two children. This seems like a legitimate scenario, but I need to find some sort of proof...but how can I just confront two men about the topic of murder without being seen as an offense?_

Nathaniel opened his eyes and realized he was in bed. His first instinctive move was sitting up, but his wife's arms were wrapped around him. He felt kind of guilty considering he has neglected Priscilla for several days, but solving this case seemed to be completely taking over his conscious and subconscious. Gently, Nathaniel placed down her arms and gave her a kiss on the cheek, then the lips. She showed a faint smile while in her sleep. It faded when Nathaniel left the room.

It was not too early in the morning, but some servants seemed to be just waking up. The somewhat young tycoon started taking mental notes on who was slacking so he could dock their pay later. The thought of visiting that town seemed to be a requirement, but how will he do so without rising suspicion in those around him? This is the reason why he paid a visit to Nurse Hannah. The white-haired worker turned and faced Nathaniel, expecting to be told something. _I wonder why such a young lady would have white hair. Was she stressed during her life?_

"Is there something that you want to tell me, Lord Harris?" Hannah was tapping her pointer finger on her desk, showing that she was in a mood for getting her work done quickly.

"Of course there is, I wouldn't have came to you if that weren't the case" Nathaniel cleared his throat. "I am planning to revisit that town where the murders took place. I assume you know what I'm talking about, because Aaron is never able to lie to you"

"I see...so why me?"

"I'll explain it to you when we get there"

Hannah and Nathaniel sat across from each other as the carriage traveled. Hannah was curious as to why she would be asked to tag along, but she knew better than to ask someone who wouldn't answer, so she spent most of the ride simply looking at the outdoors. It was still somewhat early in the morning when he told her it was time to leave, so not many people were out as they rode. Due to this lack of movement, she drifted off into a small catnap. "We're here" Nathaniel opened the door and walked outside. "We are going to walk the rest. That way we won't attract much attention."

"Why are we avoiding attention?"

"The people in the town are very alert. That is why I down-dressed today." The young tycoon gestured toward him, making Hannah realized that the clothes he had on were so plain for his taste. As they walked into the small civilization, Hannah started to notice what Nathaniel had already pointed out: the townspeople seemed to be very edgy. "Hannah, you're falling behind"

"Eh?" She faced forward and saw how the young man was indeed a good distance ahead of her, so she pulled up her gown slightly, so she could run and catch up to him. The two made it in front of a small store. Nathaniel peeked through the window, and gave himself a small nod.

"They are here"

"Who?"

"Two men, their names are Heinrick and Dylan. They are suspects of the murder, but I can't confront them, that is why you're here"

"You think a woman like me can seduce them?" she said nonchalantly. "That way you can get an easy confession out of them?"

"Well, not exactly, but close to that."

"I guess I can try..."

Hannah slowly put some of her hair to the back as she entered. The two men inside looked like they were completely drunk. _Ho_w _convenient..._ "How are you two today? Was this a celebration?"

"Yes, you pretty lass! We're celebratin' this here unexpected paycheck!"

"That does seem like something worth celebrating" Hannah walked over to the brown shelves that were now in front of her. With her finger, she was tracing the various beverages that were there, bottle by bottle. _London gin...London gin..._"Ha!" she said quietly. She pulled out a clear, medium-sized bottle, and then she took two glasses from the neighboring shelf. "How exactly did you get this 'paycheck'?" she asked as she filled both glasses with gin.

"Some rich guy gave it to me as thanks!" Heinrick took the glass; he took a few gulps. "I guess getting that kid in jail turned into a big benefit!"

"What kid?"

"A child, or brat, named Oliver..." Dylan answered, reaching for one of the glasses.

"You can't handle gin! Give that to me!" Heinrick said in a slurred manner.

"I purchased it, so I have the right to drink it! Hands off you free loader!" Dylan quickly pulled his drink away from Heinrick. Heinrick left his arm lying across the table, and drifted off into sleep. "And he says _I_can't handle my alcohol"

"It does look like he had too much..." Hannah took notice on the amount of empty glasses on the floor. _With one of them out...I just might be able to seduce the other..._ Hannah unbuttoned the first two buttons of her dress; the loosened parts showed some of her cleavage. "So what did this little brat do to be in jail?"

"Hic! He was a murderer and a thief!" Dylan said. "My merchants caught him after he committed the crime!" Dylan took another gulp of gin. "This isn't my favorite beer..."

"At least it tastes good right?"

"Of course! That's why I bought it!" Dylan looked at Hannah like there was something on her face. Then, he poked her collarbone. "Your dress falls!" He let out a strange laugh, proving he was drunk. "How was Oliver caught?" Hannah tried to get back on topic, poking his face for attention.

"The merchants I sent to load cargo found the bodies"

"Of who?"

"Hic! Of...umm...who were they? Uhhh...his friends!"

"Oliver's?"

"Yes"

"How did they die?"

"One had a sliced arm, and the other had a slit throat"

"That sounds like a gruesome way to die"

"Never thought a little kid would do something like that without hesitation"

"How do you know he didn't hesitate? Weren't they friends?"

"Ah, please! Throw some cash and he would kill his own mother!" Hannah let out a smile. Somehow, he was beginning to talk about someone else. At least, that is what she assumed since Oliver is a 'good boy'.

"Who is this kid?" Hannah refilled Dylan's glass, and then gave him a flirty-like smile. Dylan let out a laugh and took another gulp.

"I can't remember-hic!-the name...I think it was Henry...something"

"And he was?"

"Jus' sum stranguh...Heinrick got to..." Dylan started to look very dizzy.

"Got to what?"

"Kill...them"

"Sir...Sir?" Hannah shook Dylan, but he was passed out drunk.

"Don't worry, this is enough information for now" Nathaniel entered the room. "We pretty much got a confession out of them"

"Do you think that the police will actually believe what you say?"

"They will. I have connections with the police...I was an officer before I became a businessman, and if I go to the right person, these so-called 'men' will be rotting in cells in a matter of days. I just have to make this report look more legitimate." He held up a paper that was full of his handwriting. _Apparently he was recording the conversation..._Hannah stood up. "I'm glad I was help, may we leave now?"

"Of course"

A few days later, Oliver was woken up early by a middle-aged man in uniform. He rubbed his eye and looked up at the officer. "What? Isn't it a little early for breakfast?"

"This isn't breakfast kid, it's freedom" Oliver jolted up when he heard the word 'freedom'. "So you did hear me...anyway, my client has proven you innocent...sort of. You're free to go now."

"Really? I can really go without punishment?" Oliver's whole body was shaking with a type of excitement he had not known for a while. _How could Mr. Nathaniel just help me so quickly? I'm not complaining, but I was a little shocked. He must have 'high connections'._

"Well kid? You're supposed to be leaving now."

"Right..." Oliver nodded and left the building, running with joy. The first two people he saw were Nathaniel and Nurse Hannah. "Who's she?"

"This is Miss Hannah. You should thank her. I don't think my report could've supported you enough without her." Nathaniel responded.

"Are those three locked up? I don't have to deal with them again?" Nathaniel let out a nervous chuckle. "My report wasn't enough to get them in jail immediately. By 'them', I mean the two men. That boy who framed you seemingly disappeared without a trace. I'm sorry if that doesn't satisfy you."

"Oh...That's still okay! I'm just glad I don't have to endlessly sit in an empty cell anymore!"

Oliver stretched his arms, legs, and moved around for a little bit. His head jerked up suddenly, and let out a beaming smile. "There you are James!" The small goldfinch flew in circles above Oliver's head. The young boy laughed. "Hey James, slow down!" Oliver gave chase to the little bird and the two adults watched. "How precious. This reminds me of all those stories I read in childhood where the children run through the grasses." Hannah giggled.

"That rewarding feeling...is actually real, not just some thing people say...you know- to make others do well."

"So why did you do this? Helping out a boy that you don't even know really seems out of your...character." Hannah asked hesitantly.

"The heart I have when it comes to business and the one to children...are polar opposites. Having a daughter made me care, I guess."

_Well, there's no doubt about that...I'll never forget those days that made me think you wouldn't care for your own family..._"So...what are you going to do with the boy now?" Hannah asked. Nathaniel looked down at the ground, putting on his 'business face' again. "There's no position for him in this area now...so I guess I have to find a place for him..."

"What place? I don't think he'll have any type of position in the manor either...I can just imagine the tension if he met your wife...or had any type of reunion with Miss Ainsley."

"No...Neither of the two places would work. All of the rooms are taken up by workers. I guess we can look around neighboring towns...someone might want to take 'im in, as long as his spoiled reputation didn't spread that far."Hey kid!" Nathaniel called Oliver over. Oliver stopped chasing James and ran over to the man."Yes sir?" Oliver smiled.

"You want to take a ride with us? There's enough room in the carriage, and we need to find a place for you to stay."

"Why can't I just stay here? Miss Greene wouldn't mind me right?"

"You do realize that even if proven innocent, people will still be on guard when around you right? Outsiders like them will never get the full story."

"Oh..._you're right_" Oliver suddenly sounded glum; his gaze was facing slightly away from everyone. He looked back at them, but he was clearly still upset. "Where can I go?"

"We offered you a ride for a reason. We have to find you a new place to live." Nathaniel explained. "It's a better opportunity to find a home outside of this area. Plus, some of the outside towns are much more...cleansed compared to this trade town."

"Okay, I guess..."

The three remained silent, so silent that the occasional flapping of James' wings could be heard. When that didn't occur, they simply listened to the clacking sound of the horses hooves, and the bumping sounds from when the carriage would go over some type of hump. James flew over Oliver's head, keeping the boy occupied, but not even the clamor from that silly situation would get either of the adults to talk. _This is so uncomfortable... I know I'm just a kid in comparison, but can't we get just one conversation going? This ride seems so eternal at the moment. If I could just get their attention..._"Umm..." The two adults perked up at the sound; they stared at Oliver blankly, waiting for them say something. Their gazes made him feel very awkward. "Isn't this ride...nice? Why is it so awfully quiet?" He chuckled awkwardly. They remained ever so silent. "N-Never mind..." Oliver looked down at his lap. James was oddly still. _Even James is affected by this awkwardness..._ Oliver glanced up at the two, trying to 'read them'. He could not decipher even a single thought they might have. For another hour the carriage went on. The sun would barely reach through the closed curtain, despite it being in its brightest state.

Finally, the carriage had stopped; Aaron opened the door, inviting the three outside. Oliver had to adjust to the sun's brightness before he could get a glance of their destination: a fairly large building, resembling a house, but different. "Well Oliver, follow me. Hannah and Aaron, you can stay outside or come in if you like."

"I'll keep Aaron company. After all, it must be boring to watch over a carriage alone" Hannah nodded as she rejecting the ladder offer. "As you wish" Nathaniel nudged Oliver and the two preceded to the building. The building was wide, and there were two visible floors. Judging by the windows, there must be several rooms. In the surrounding area, there was a completely empty yard. _What could that be used for?_Oliver jolted when he heard the loud banging that Nathaniel caused while knocking on the door. It took a few minutes of waiting, driving both of them impatient. Before they considered leaving, the sound of loud footsteps came toward the front door. The door slowly opened; a young woman's face could be seen. The first impression she had given was shyness, for she had such a fragile look to her. Her skin was slightly pale, and her hair was very straight and black. "My apologies for taking long...what business do you have with me this time, Nathaniel?"


	12. Chapter 12: Somewhere Safe

Hello viewers, My sincere apologies for taking so long to update. My stupid editor was enjoying his summer vacation and left me in the dark for weeks, so blame him for the long wait.  
>By the way, my editor is doing a story which I've read and really loved called "Tale of the Snow Lady"<br>His fanfiction name is "Trollkastel34" if any of you are actually interested.

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><p>"It's good to see you again, Mikayla" Nathaniel gave a small bow to the young girl. Mikayla opened the door wide enough so she could be seen in full view. Her attire was that of a housekeeper, and sleepless nights were etched into her face, symbolizing the endless hard work she committed to. "It'd be nice to see you too, if your timing were a bit better. I'm still cleaning; I have to start meal preparations for the young residents." Mikayla rubbed her eye, and let out a small yawn. Her other eye took a glance at a young blonde boy. "Is he the reason why you're here? Does he need a place to stay?"<p>

"As terse as ever, aren't you?"

"Again, your timing could have been better" Mikayla crouched down to Oliver's height. "What is your name?" Mikayla asked politely. "…My name's Oliver, it's nice to see you Miss Mikayla…" He nodded his head, as if he were trying to add sincerity. "What about your age?" Mikayla asked.

"…"

"Well?" Mikayla was trying to get her answers quick, but Oliver seemed to be at a complete loss just trying to remember his age_…How old am I? Umm…I was born in December…_Oliver was counting on his fingers, making it bluntly obvious he hadn't kept track of his own age. "What day is it?"

"The 5th of December, am I correct?" Nathaniel tried to confirm with Mikayla. She replied "No…it's the 7th…has your mind been out of it too, sir?"

"Well, I would be lying if I said I was keeping tract of the days" Nathaniel let out a laugh to hide his embarrassment. "I'm 12!" Oliver announced, as if he had just discovered that himself (which he did).

"Do you know your birthday, last name, or any other information?" Mikayla continued her little interview.

"…All I remember is that my birthday is before Christmas; I can't even remember the exact day. I'm sorry, Miss Mikayla."

"…That's all right. Some orphans had to be given names and pretend birthdays by me."

"This is an orphanage?" Oliver asked Nathaniel. "Well, that would explain why it has a lot of rooms."

"Don't worry; the kids that live here are a lively bunch…a bit too lively at times." Mikayla giggled. "Come on in" With her hand, she had gestured for them to come in, and they did so. The place was much larger inside compared to how its exterior appeared. The ceiling was a cream color, and the floors were white, a carpet at each door. As they walked, Oliver used his analyzing skills which he developed as a thief. A mental map was developing in his head. "Try to keep your steps quiet. Many of the young ones are still sleeping." Mikayla had unknowingly brought up another one of Oliver's acquired skills. They took a left turn after finally making it to the end of the long hallway. _This place truly is large… _Oliver's eyes wandered. Each door had a slightly different decoration. That probably helped Mikayla navigate. _I bet she thinks 'Okay, the room with the stuffed teddy bear in front is…where again?_' Oliver laughed silently to himself. He started gazing on the other side of the hall, and noticed another detail that each door shared: there were small plaques that had names printed on the front of each door. Since there appeared to be some time to pass, he read some of the names as he walked. _These names go from 'plain' to 'just plain fancy'! Rose, Alex, Michaela, Rochelle, Marianna…_He skipped a few doors to catch up with Mikayla and Nathaniel. _Anna, Lucy, Ellen, Mark, Lucas,__Noah_…

_**!**_

Oliver stared at the sixth named; memories he tried to keep at the back of his head came back. _Noah…and Olivia too_…As his eye started to grow in luster it began to fill with burning tears, he heard Nathaniel calling for him. "What's taking you? Hurry up kid!" Oliver briskly rubbed his eye with his sleeve. "I'm coming!" The young boy ran over to Nathaniel. His speed was too much for James to stay perched on his shoulder, so the bird flew after his master. Nathaniel looked down at the child, a question on his mind, but he remained silent and kept walking. "Here we are!" Mikayla whispered, trying to excite Oliver, but he was too down to be invigorated. She gestured to the room in front of the three. There were only two names on this door: 'Mai' and 'Ron'.

"Here is your new room. The two children will be your roommates. I hope you don't mind that."

"Not at all!" Oliver said in pure monotone. "Oh…then why do you appear so upset?" Mikayla asked, looking somewhat younger when she did.

"No reason" he replied, deadpanned. He didn't want to go over the topic about his dead friend. "Should I just wait? I wouldn't want to wake them up early" _Even though that was done to me..._Oliver wanted to add. "Perhaps I can help you do those jobs that you were talking about at the door?"

"Why of course!" She said a little too quickly; her facial expression gave away the fact that she loathed having to do so much work. "Uhh...I doubt you would be up for cleaning..." she said, noting Oliver's _lovely_layer of dirt. _Great, I'll have to clean the floor again later._ "How about you go and clean yourself? This place has a whole wardrobe of clothing that might fit you. I'll show you to the washroom."

"Don't I need to fill out paperwork?" Nathaniel asked, feeling forgotten. "We can save that little errand for later" Mikayla said, her face screaming '_this kid stinks!'_

"Come on Oliver, the washroom is this way." Mikayla lightly pushed Oliver further down the hall, leaving Nathaniel still in the hallway. _I guess I can save this for tomorrow?_

Oliver looked around the small room. It was a shiny white masterpiece in the places where it was clean. The little tub, probably meant for him now, was oval-shaped, a little bit below the soap dish, and did not seem to have the slightest speck of dirt on it. However that didn't last long. "Well, off they go!" Mikayla tugged at Oliver's overused jacket, causing him to flinch. "I can do this myself!" Oliver backed away, then instantly turned around. "...Can you leave? I don't want to get undressed in front of a lady."

"You have more manners than I expected kid!" Mikayla smiled. "But I refuse to let even a speck of dirt make its way into the halls I care for!" She lifted up a bar of soap and a rag, her becoming deadly serious. "Uhhh...Hey...Miss Mikayl-!"

Oliver practically sulked in the water as Mikayla started scrubbing down his back; he barely kept his nose above the water. Once she finished cleaning his back, she handed him another rag, soaked and filled with soap. "If you are too uncomfortable with me cleaning you 'down there', then do it yourself. Work quickly, because I have to wash your hair as well, and then there are meal preparations..." She let out a yawn. _Is Miss Mikayla the only one here? How sad...she's very over worked. I'll help her with this stuff so she can get some rest!_ With new determination, Oliver cleaned himself down very quickly, and was finished before Mikayla was even done lathering his hair. "What's with this eagerness? You barely even gave me a chance to think about your assignments"

"I figured I get things over with quickly" Oliver responded, suddenly becoming harder for Mikayla to 'read' him the way most adults do. The woman began scrubbing down his hair, even more than she was doing to his bare skin. _There is so much dirt here_. Her eye gave a small twitch, but she kept at the current task. Once the washing was done, Oliver was practically glowing compared to how he looked before. _How often does he clean himself, once a month?_ Mikayla looked at the small tub she once took pride in, but wanted to sulk when she saw the wet layer of dirt she would have to clean later. _How does this much dirt even cling to one person anyway? _"Well, here, take this towel and dry yourself up. I'll get you a set of clothes."

"Can I come with you?"

"Are you sure? The hall can be chilly to a person without any clothing."

"I've been under more uncomfortable conditions; I just want to get dressed quicker"

"Fine then, Follow me." The two went up to the second floor, took a right, and went halfway down the hall. Mikayla opened the door that had a daisy as its front decoration. The room was nearly empty, besides a bed and a wardrobe. Oliver entered the room with her, and she began pulling out different garments. "How about this? It seems to suit you." She held up a dark-blue buttoned shirt, black pants, and white socks. "I'll get you some shoes right now, just give me a moment" Mikayla scooted to the left of the wardrobe and pulled out a large box; then she opened the cover revealing various pairs of shoes. "They may not be that new, but they will do for playing. To make them last longer, I tell the children to wear them _only_ for playing."

"How often do they play?"

"Long enough to give me time to rest." She said before letting out a long yawn, cueing Oliver to do what he planned. Without thinking much, he took the clothes from her and began to change, hiding what he didn't want seen during the process with the towel. "I thought you didn't want to change in front of a lady!" Mikayla giggled. "But this time I have a towel!" Oliver said, completely dressed and holding up the towel. "Just as I though, it looks great on you!"

"Will I get my other clothes back?"

"You like them? I can get them washed for you..."

"Never mind" Oliver beamed. "I can adjust to this...Hey, where's James?" Oliver looked around the room, and then ran out of it. Just as he was about to go down the stairs, he saw the goldfinch chirping while perched on the bottom step. _Thank goodness I caught him early_...Oliver let out a small whistle, cueing James to come to him. "Will I have to get some food for this little fella? They eat seeds right? I've never seen a live American Goldfinch."

"I'm pretty sure...unless I've been feeding him the wrong food for all this time..." Oliver gave a happy, yet puzzled look. "How'd you know James was an American Goldfinch? Not many people I know are experts on birds"

"I've read a lot of books in my lifetime, but I do wonder… How were you able to get such a bird in this part of Britain?" She asked curiously. Oliver stood there, a blank expression taking over his face. "I honestly don't remember...I've had James since I was little boy..."

"Really? He's kind of old for a bird then. Then again, you could still be considered a little boy." Mikayla said, poking Oliver's face. "Hey! I'll tell you I'm quite grown, far too grown to be called a little boy!" Oliver objected. "Shh...The young ones are still sleeping." Mikayla said, heading down the stairs. Oliver followed her down, and they continued walking to the other side of the building, which appeared to be the kitchen. "I guess today we can have jam and bread"

"How many kids are here?" Oliver asked. "A lot, actually, with you we officially have 31..." She turned around and saw Oliver standing on a stool, reaching for plates. "You actually are going to help? I'm surprised." Mikayla let out a small giggle. "Why wouldn't I?"

"It's just that when kids offer me help, they seem to forget and go on to play" she said, while pulling out food from storage. "I'm not just a kid" Oliver said, placing down the final plate. "I've been one to help out others when it comes to...things" _I've got to stop reminding myself of the past!_

"Be careful on your way down" Mikayla said, pulling Oliver up from the ground. _I fell? Only more the reason to snap out of it._ "At least the plates didn't fall" Mikayla took half of the pile; Oliver followed suit. "You are going to place them in front of every seat in the dining room" Mikayla ordered. "The sooner you do it, the faster you'll get to eat!" She chimed.

"All right!" One part of Oliver that will never seem to change is his determination to get food. He made his way around the dining room like a horse on full speed; he even offered to finish putting down the rest of the plates for Mikayla. _Geez, this kid..._ "I'll see to the actual meal then..." She smiled awkwardly as she did so. Oliver was impatiently waiting at a round table, staring Mikayla down with eagerness. Even the bird on his shoulder appeared to have some excitement. Apparently, Mikayla was fixed on putting food on the other plates before Oliver; the said boy was tapping his foot repeatedly. "You must be really hungry..." She nervously chuckled, placing down the bread and putting some jam on the side of his plate. "Do you have any seeds for James?" Oliver asked. "Uhh...I actually don't. I guess I can sacrifice some of my garden's vegetation...he can feed himself like in the wild right?"

"Maybe? So where's the garden?" Oliver looked out the window, but only saw the empty area that was used for playtime. "It's not near here silly. I would never keep my precious plants in the reach of mischievous children...It is in the same direction you're facing though." Mikayla pointed out. "Just go past those bushes and make a slight left turn."

"Thank you Miss Mikayla! You've been surprisingly nice to me even though I've only known you for less than two hours." Oliver picked up his remaining piece of bread, dipped in the jam, and then went outside. Mikayla watched him leave, but then suddenly remembered something. "You forgot to wear shoes! Aw, never mind..." She sighed, and then went to get the children to eat their breakfast.

_Stepping on dirt again feels kind of refreshing..._ Oliver took his time heading to the garden, seeing no need to rush. At least, that was what he thought until James flew ahead of him. Following instinct, Oliver chased after his pet. He found the little bird atop a sunflower head, his head rising every other second. _James is such a light eater._ As his pet continued to eat, Oliver finished his bread and walked around the garden. _Miss Mikayla seems to like gardening even more than Miss Greene!_ There were many flowers, and almost all of them were beautiful. The only ones that weren't were the ones not in full bloom. Her vegetables also seemed to be very plump and juicy based on appearance. There was a noticeable lack of fruits, unlike Vienna's garden. Once Oliver had made a full circle around the garden, James suddenly flew onto his shoulder, chirping. The constant chatter of young voices was also very noticeable. Oliver stepped onto the 'playground' and saw a bunch of children varying in age and size. He stood there silently, looking at the scene. Kids were having a fun and making a mess of themselves; the slightly older ones did have some table manners. Oliver shook his head, wondering why he had so much hesitation. He forced himself to walk again, but suddenly bumped into someone.

"Hey, watch it! Err... I mean..." A boy said. "Hey, be nice!" A girl scolded him. Oliver took a good look at these two: They appeared to be in his age group. The boy he had bumped into was taller than him by about a few inches. His hair color was abnormal: It looked like pure violet reflecting in the morning sun, and his eyes matched the color of his hair, which was put into a short ponytail. His hat was as blue as the sky, and there were patches of lighter blue in it. His shirt and shorts were also sky blue; his shoes were black and brown (probably because of dirt). The boy's tan was uneven: Parts that most would assume was his original skin color were very pale, such as a small area above his feet. Parts on his face looked like a mixture of tan and grey, and the rest of his body was a caramel color, if that caramel were diluted. The girl who accompanied him was slightly shorter than Oliver, perhaps and inch, if that. She shared the abnormal purple-haired trait, but it was a slightly lighter hue, and her hair was out. Her eyes seemed to be a mixture of yellow and brown, just like her shirt. Her tan was very even, unlike the boy's. It was a very light tan, but she definitely couldn't be called pale with it. Her skirt was black with a white stripe in the middle, and her shoes were plain white (not including the dirt) Oliver continued to watch this shorter girl admonish her friend, who was awkwardly laughing it off. Suddenly, he turned away from her and faced Oliver.

"Hi, my name's Ron!" Ron held out his hand, and with his head, he gestured towards the girl. "Her name's Mai. Mikayla told us we have to share the room with you, so 'welcome'...I guess."

"Forget him!" Mai said, while hitting the boy on the head. "He sucks at giving a good introduction, but it is true that Miss Mikayla said you were our new roommate." She tried to give a bright smile. "Since you're new, you have to be shown the ways of the place" said Ron as he tried to look cool, pointing back at the building. _Now that's just cute..._ Oliver thought, with extreme sarcasm. "So what are the ways?" Oliver asked, partially feigning interest. "ONE..." Mai shouted while jabbing Oliver's face with her finger. "No gloomy faces are allowed here, you got that?"

"Huh?" Oliver's eye opened wide at this first rule. "You got that?" Mai gave a large grin, and gave a thumb up to Oliver, assuming he would accept that rule. "Uhh... okay!" Oliver nodded and (weakly) returned Mai's grin. "Rule two: You better be up for action, or play, at any moment!" Ron said. "And finally...be as nice to Miss Mikayla as you possibly can. I've never met anyone as nice as her." Mai nodded as a conclusion. "Okay...is that all?" Oliver asked. "Well, there's also rule four. Rule four is 'follow all the rules Miss Mikayla gives you'." Ron shrugged.

Oliver laughed. _These two seem interesting_... Mai suddenly jumped up, attracting attention from both of the boys. "A bird~! It looks so cute too!"

"James is not cute! He is the most awesome bird alive!" Oliver declared. "Oh, so he's your bird?" Mai asked. "How do you know it's a 'he'?"

"Male goldfinches tend to be a very bright yellow during warmer times and mating season while females are a yellowish-green-brown color almost all year round." Oliver explained. "Since James was a very bright yellow not that long ago and changed into his winter plumage, it is proven that he is male." Oliver put his chin slightly up, feeling like an expert. "You know all that stuff on a little bird? How much time do you have on your hands-I mean! - who taught you that?" Ron rubbed the side of his arm as Mai glared at him.

"I remember when I was very little. My daddy gave me James on my birthday..." Oliver's accent stood out slightly more.

"Oh, uh sorry. Didn't mean to bring up any rough topics." Ron scratched his cheek.

"I don't see the big issue on it. It's been several years since I last saw my mother and father. Haven't most of us here suffered the same losses?" Oliver asked.

"Yeah, I guess so. The thing is, I haven't heard a peep from my folks for a whole decade" Ron shrugged again. "So I couldn't really care less. This is my home now, and that's all that matters."

_I wish I was able to move on the way he can..._

"Wait. A whole decade? You were left here as a baby?"

"No. I was six years of age when fate decided to dump me here."

"You're sixteen?" Oliver was purely shocked. "At least I'll age gracefully, looking like a kid doesn't really mean that much." Ron was just doing a stretch now. "I'm going to eat my breakfast now, are you to going to come?" Ron asked.

"No, I already finished" Oliver said.

"You're not supposed to say that! We've got to introduce you to the other kids!" Mai said as if she were already announcing. "Come on!" Mai grabbed Oliver's hand and forced him to go forward. He felt very awkward during this. Ron was already sitting on the round table with a bunch of other kids Oliver didn't know.

_Mai looks really excited_... Ron bit into his bread, expecting her outburst.

"Hey everybody!" Mai shouted very clearly. Most of them turned to face her and Oliver holding hands, but kept eating.

"It's been a great time at this place for all of us right? So let's share it with our newcomer!" Mai held up Oliver's hand high like how the umpire would do for a winning boxer. "This kid's name is Oliver! Let's give him a warm welcome!"

"HI OLIVER...!" The loud and childish unison reminded Oliver of what a classroom was like. However, despite the awkwardness, he felt very happy.

"Thank you everyone, it's very nice to be here..."

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><p>Dawww, wasn't that precious? Oh, Fun Fact:<p>

The characters 'Mai' and 'Ron' are not just ordinary OC's; they are based of the UTAU and fanmade vocaloid "Ai Ikeda and "Tempo Ron". Search them both on deviantart if you have the time.


	13. Chapter 13: Transition

Hello readers, thanks for waiting. My apologies for the long wait and long chapter...  
>_<p>

After breakfast, almost everything broke loose. Many children left behind their plates and ran to the play area; only a few of them had shoes on. Within that same minute, children were playing some bizarre form of the game 'catch'. Oliver was caught a little off-guard by this 'energy' that Mikayla had vaguely described to him. _How does she keep track of 30 rascals?_ He thought, not considering that he was one of them now. He technically had two people he could consider 'friends', but he was in no mood for play. "C'mon! Let's go play catch with the others!" Mai said, tugging on Oliver's arm.

"Not quite yet Mai~" Miss Mikayla put her hands on the top of Mai's and Oliver's heads. "I'm not going to let a certain promise just slip away from me~"

"Oh, right, I promised to help with chores." Oliver said, awkwardly laughing. "Okay then, I'll help!" Mai shot her fist in the air. Ron walked up to them. "I guess I can tag along. More hands equals smaller work load."

"Now that's the spirit! It looks like you're finally acting your age Ron~!" Mikayla cheered. "First part of business: Get the dishes clean!"

"Hey, I think I act like the proper sixteen-year-o-"

"Leave it to us Miss Mikayla!" Mai said, interrupting Ron. _Someone must really like Miss Mikayla._ Oliver thought while watching Mai rush through the tables, collecting the dishes. "Hey, don't expect me to get all of them!" Mai yelled to get their attention. "Sorry" Oliver and Ron said in unison; they began to pick up dishes.

The three headed towards the kitchen; each one of them placed the dishes in the sink. "How about you and Oliver wash the dishes and I dry them and place them away? I am the tallest after all." Ron spoke.

"Not by much" Oliver stated, causing Mai to laugh. "Hey, at least I don't need to stand on a stool." Ron defended himself. "Uhh…you still have to go on your tip-toes to reach the cabinet." Oliver began washing a plate, using too much soap. "Don't treat our supplies like they're endless Oliver! You have to make that much soap last through at least five dishes, if not more! " Mai rinsed a dish she had just completed, and then handed it over to Ron, who did the task he assigned himself. "Let's get through this quickly! You have to be acquainted with the other kids." Mai started washing dishes faster, causing the two boys to work faster themselves. "I don't have to do all of that in one day. This is _thirty_ kids you're talking about." Oliver said, handing a dish to Ron. "Twenty-eight" Ron corrected. "You're acquainted with us, are you not?"

"I guess, but I don't see why I have to go through meeting twenty-eight kids in one day. I get the feeling I'll have a lot of time, so why not just let things take their natural course?"

"I agree with Oliver. Why not just wait Mai? We have a chore at hand"

"Hmph…" Mai ignored the other two and kept washing dishes.

"How is it going?" Mikayla asked the moment she came into the room. The three faced her with smiles. "We just finished. Is there anything else you want us to do Miss Mikayla?" Mai asked. The woman thought to herself about what they should do next. "Our food inventory is getting short. Are you three willing to do some shopping?"

"Of course!"

"Just a warning, you will be expected to carry a lot."

"Hey, we're strong, plus there's three of us" Ron said. "Okay then, here's the list" Mikayla said as she handed them a slip of paper. "Wait, you're going to need money as well." Mikayla reached into her pocket and pulled out a somewhat large pouch. "Make sure to bring each pound back, besides the ones you spend."

"Of course!" Mai nodded. "Are we allowed to buy any treats?"

"I guess…if you can find something that can be shared, please do. There's not as much money as usual."

"Got it. Okay, let's go!" Mai ran through the door. "I guess you two will have to take the bags" Mikayla giggled, and then pointed over to a pile of large, cloth-like bags. "Oh, you don't have to take them all, just three will do."

"Okay" The two boys replied in unison, grabbed the bags, and started to head out. "Ahem!" Mikayla said, causing the two to halt. "Forgetting something?" She held up the pouch with money. "Oh right…" Ron laughed nervously, and then took the money from Mikayla. "We'll try to be quick" He said right before leaving.

When the two boys finally made it to the front entrance, Mai was waiting for them. "What took you two so long?"

"Well, we did have to carry these bags and the money" Oliver said. "Plus we didn't sprint outside, for we could've broken our necks." Ron added. "Please, those things aren't that much" Mai smirked. "I'll take a bag if you two are gonna complain"

"Why thank you~, that's much appreciated" Oliver laughed. "Anyway, where do we get the food?"

"At the marketplace, where else?" Ron replied with sarcasm. "Ron, you're being rude again!" Mai shouted.

"Sorry. Anyway, let's go." Ron began to lead the way to the market place. The straight path was perfect for running; that is exactly what they did until they reached the market place. It was much smaller and much cleaner than the one the Oliver used to steal from. The clothing that the people wore seemed to be of lower quality though. The marketplace was very lively. People were talking about all sorts of things, especially business. However, there weren't many children around. _Not much of an opportunity socializing here_ thought Oliver. "First thing on the list…" Mai said. "…ten pounds worth of butter"

"Ten pounds?" Oliver said.

"Remember, we have a lot of people at home"

"Okay…Wait how much butter is that?"

"Not that much, but it's not exactly a small amount either, referring to weight." Ron explained. "Butter and most dairy products are sold by that old woman if I remember correctly" They went over to a corner where an elderly woman had just handed over something wrapped to an assumed mother, since she was carrying a baby. Ron made a hand gesture saying he would handle this, so Oliver and Mai just stood there waiting. He came back very quickly, so Mai instantly said the next thing on the list. "Meat: Ham, pork, beef, and turkey. This should add up to five pounds in weight."

"Whoa, and that's only the second thing on the list?" Oliver thought, looking at the long piece of paper, noting the small handwriting. "Don't think like a wuss!" Ron laughed, receiving a death glare from Mai. This time he didn't seem affected by it.

It seemed like a few hours became an eternity as the trio carried the bags back. "Damn the last note of the list" said Ron. "_Don't drag the bags back. They might get damaged!_" Oliver mocked Miss Mikayla's voice, receiving a kick from Mai. "Don't ever make fun of her; she works too hard for us!"

"Jeez, lighten up Mai!" Oliver said a little startled. He nearly lost balance carrying his bag. "Did you try to keep the bags even in weight?"

"No. I just put stuff in." Ron replied, looking like a hunchback as he carried his bag. "Maybe we should try alternating bags to see if that's any relief?"

"Nice try…" Oliver pulled his bag over his shoulders. "How are you holding Mai?"

"It's all willpower…" She appeared to laugh, but looked ready to cry. "Don't strain yourself! We can take a break if you want" Ron said. Mai didn't even bother saying anything and simply collapsed. "Mai! Are you okay?"

"Just peachy~" The sarcasm spoke more than Mai. "Aw, man! Why didn't we bring a wagon or something?" Oliver complained. "The orphanage doesn't have one. Almost all the money goes towards keeping the building standing." Ron groaned, showing his frustration. "Just like you, most of us just got dropped off here by someone else. The lucky ones get adopted the moment they come here, typically by the one that brought them there in the first place."

"I'd say we're lucky too! We get a roof over our heads, lots of friends, and we learn the basics of education thanks to Miss Mikayla!" Mai said. "We also live off the donations of a bunch of greedy bastards…" Ron muttered to himself, so Mai couldn't hear. Oliver was able to hear though, for he had to be able to hear the slightest of sounds in his past. He contained his laugh, knowing that would cause Mai's suspicion. '_Greedy bastards'…I wonder if Nathaniel is in that category._Oliver did some stretches and cleared his throat. "You about done then?" Ron laughed. "If we don't get back soon, the next meal will be late!"

"Please, I was waiting for you two!" Oliver boasted. "Break-time's over already? Oh well…" Mai lugged up her bag, and then got up to follow the two boys who looked somewhat close to leaving her behind.

The three managed to make it back to the orphanage without showing too many signs of being exhausted. Miss Mikayla was waiting for them in the front. "There you are. I was worried something had happened! What took you so long?!"

"Maybe we shouldn't have had break-time…" Ron said. "I think it was those meat pies that got me distracted…" Oliver added. "Wait…" Ron spoke "We didn't even buy any Oliver!"

"Uh, forget what I said" The blonde let out a smile, trying to hide his awkwardness. "Forget your excuses; the food has to be put in storage. I have to start preparations for lunch and dinner as well." Mikayla clapped a few times as a signal.

"Okay!" Mai shouted, seeming to get a new burst of energy. She rushed inside, heading for the kitchen area. "You two should follow her example…" Mikayla said._ Why can't we just drag the bags?_Oliver thought for the umpteenth time. _Just a little longer…I can just drop the bag right?_

Oliver's arms felt a little limp after that errand; he waved them so he could remember they were there. Mai poked Oliver; Ron cleared his throat. "What?" Oliver asked. "Are you just going to stand there or are you going to play? The day's not over yet!" Mai gestured outside.

"Oh, right…"

Oliver hesitantly followed Ron and Mai outside to the once empty play area. The moment he had stepped out, Oliver had to dodge a ball that was coming straight for his face. There were children wherever you looked; they laughed continuously. It was like a recording was put on an eternal loop. Ron instantly joined without any question asked; Mai gestured towards Oliver to join as well, right before she started playing herself. _Is this 'catch' or 'dodge the ball'?_ Oliver watched this game, slowly getting excited. Those around Ron's age threw passes that looked like it could decapitate you if you failed to catch it; some of the youngest players, around four or five, threw the ball so weakly that someone would have to pick it up after it was done with its slow rolling.

The perfect opportunity came when the ball was in the range of Oliver's arm. He quickly grabbed the ball and launched it, aiming for Ron's face. The short older teen took this challenge and returned the ball so fast Oliver had to dodge it. Some other kid with brown hair picked up the ball and threw it at Mai, who threw it at another blonde kid Oliver didn't know. _Maybe I should start learning their names…_ Oliver thought. The game must have gone on for a very long time, because he only realized that he was sweating like a dog when Mikayla called for dinner. Of course he was one of the first to run in, followed by many of the younglings. The tables filled up quickly; Oliver volunteered to pass the plates around due to his own impatience. Dinner was mostly taken up by fruits and vegetables; to liven up the meal, meat was on the side. Most of the children seemed to have pork as their choice of meat, but Mai had beef. _Does she have something against pigs?_ Oliver thought as he started cleaning his plate.

Once again, the lack of table manners reoccurred. However, some children seemed to start avoiding the 'mess-making' since Mikayla was supervising this meal. _Wait…if this is only dinnertime, what am I supposed to do until supper? Playing is fun and all, and with this many people it's a great experience, but I doubt I have the stamina to deal with it…! This meat tastes__**amazing**__!_Oliver continued to get lost in the food. He had never had anything cooked this decently, so he wanted to take the time to appreciate each bite…for about a half-second each. Despite his speed, his was only the third person to finish his food. The few older teens that were there besides Ron had beaten him to it. Once everyone finished their food (and their seconds), Mikayla showed them to different rooms. _What is this?_ Oliver thought with a lot of curiosity. There were only two rooms; they were noticeably larger than the rest. Most kids around the ages of ten and up were sent to the room on the right; the rest were sent to the other room. Miss Mikayla entered the room on the left for reasons Oliver did not know.

"What's going on?" Oliver asked Mai, who was not too far in front of him. "School" she replied. "What?" Oliver was not comfortable with the thought of kids younger than him learning about his poor reading ability. He could read some words like 'storage', 'food', 'meat', 'grains', 'fruits', and 'tools'. They were very important words to Oliver. Other than that, he was pretty hopeless when it came to reading.

The 'Schoolroom' meant for those ten and older was larger than most rooms in the building; if not the largest that Oliver had seen. The walls were a pale green and maroon carpets covered most of the wooden floors. Wooden chairs and tables were almost instantly occupied by the self-taught students. On the far right side of the room there were papers and writing utensils, along with a decent amount of art supplies. In the back of the room were large shelves that contained many books of various sizes.

"Here, take one!" Mai handed Oliver two different books: One had a plain cover and the other had numbers. Another sweat drop visibly went down Oliver's face. "For how long do we have to do this?" He asked nervously. "Until break-time, that's about two hours or so." Mai said, causing Oliver to gulp. "O-okay then…" he accepted the book, mentally praying that it would be filled with three-letter words. His prayers weren't answered. Oliver sat next to Mai who was going on with her book, reading page by page. Meanwhile the only things Oliver could understand were the few three-letter words, the number '1' and the word 'I'. _'I'…am screwed._Oliver thought. He was still trying to figure what the word right before '1' was. He summoned his vague memory of the alphabet and went through the letters of that word. _C…H-A…P…T…E-R. Gaaah! What does that spell?!_ Oliver scratched his head, suddenly noticing that James was on top of it. _He's been so quiet I forgot he was there…_ Mai closed her book, and looked at Oliver. "You should read that book. Miss Mikayla does checks on us. At the very least you should get past the first page!"

"I can't even read…!" Oliver wanted to cry out of embarrassment, but he was too manly for that. Instead, he covered his hand with his face. "You could've just told me y'know…" Mai smiled. "I'll get you one that's a little more basic; we can read it together."

"Okay…" Oliver attempted regaining some of his dignity. It was a little difficult for him though. Moments later Mai came back with a book about half as thick as the one she originally gave Oliver. "This should be easy enough…"

"Is it just three-letter words?" Oliver asked, causing Mai to giggle. "No, but I'll help you with the other words!"

"Okay…"

The two hours passed by very quickly, even though it at first appeared to be an eternity. Oliver really enjoyed learning how to read fluently, even though he imagined it to be a chore. _Knowing how to talk really helps…_ Oliver thought. Mai did not go over every little detail on how to read, but rather gave him helpful shortcuts. "Try to follow the sounds of the letters. Some letters make two sounds. Those are 'A', 'E' 'I', 'O', and 'U'. The alternate sounds are 'ah' for 'A', 'eh' for 'E', and 'uh' for 'U'; For the short sounds of 'I' and 'O' think of the words 'it' and 'moss'. By the way, those two words look like this." Mai pointed to the two words so Oliver could recognize and memorize them. In the remaining half-hour, Oliver was able to read half of the book without help. "Good Job!" She game him a thumb up. "Wanna try out that other book I gave you?"

"I guess…wait! How much time do we have?" Oliver asked.

"Not much, but I figured you could get in a couple of pages, no?"

"Fine then…"

"Good~!" Mai picked up the book with a plain white cover and handed it to Oliver for the second time. Oliver quietly read the book to Mai, too embarrassed to speak aloud. He didn't want to mess up in front of the other kids. She instantly corrected him when he pronounced 'chapter' as 'kahapter'. He read very slowly, but managed to make it to the second chapter before Mikayla announced break-time.

Oliver let out a sigh of relief and closed the book without hesitation. Mai laughed at him. "Was that really too much thinking for you?"

"YES!" Oliver said louder than he intended. "I haven't read a book since I was five! And those books were small and read to me!"

"I get it, I get it!" She giggled. "Ka-hapter..."

"Shut up!" Oliver hissed, blushing with even more embarrassment. "Anyway, what do we do during break?"

"Nothing much" Mai shrugged. "Some do doodles on paper, others take a nap, and the over-achievers keep working as if there were no break at all."

"Well I'm certainly not in _that_ category!_" _ Oliver stretched his arms and started to lie on the floor. "Don't tell me you're trying to take a nap! Break-time isn't that long."

Mai crawled over to Oliver and poked him. The boy remained still. "There's no way you're already asleep!" She thought aloud. _That was like five seconds at most!_ Mai looked down at the young child, and gave a soft smile. _He looks like a baby when he's sleeping…_ She took this amount of time to look over Oliver's facial features. He was more on the pale side; the small redness on his face was very noticeable thanks to that. He had a slight smile as he slept, adding to his cherubic appearance. His eyelashes were long for a boy, but some appeared to be plucked out. She then noticed the bandage on Oliver's other eye. _Why is that there? Was he injured or is he pretending to be a pirate?_ Mai's curiosity was getting the best of her. She stared at the bandage, completely forgetting about the rest of his face. _Is there a scar under here? The bandages look kind of old…_

The girl hesitantly raised her hand, trembling, over Oliver's face. He was still dead asleep, yet she was afraid of him waking up. She knew better, that it was offensive, than to touch the bandage, but she was still only fourteen. Those around that age still can get curious. She started by placing her finger over his forehead. She gently, gradually, and cautiously slid her finger across the bandage. She could not feel a scar. In fact, she barely felt anything besides a flap of skin. _Maybe it's because I'm pressing too lightly…_ She repeated the process once again, slower and with more force, but avoided pressing too hard. _It still feels like nothing's there…_This time, she focused on the empty area, still trying to avoid putting too much pressure. Little did she know that the owner of the bandage was beginning to twitch. He began to twitch as if he were suffering unbearable pain.

"What are you doing?"

"EH?" Mai jolted back, quickly catching a reddened glare from Oliver. No, there's no way this could have been that same boy with the sleeping baby face a few moments ago. His glare had this type of cruelness and hatred and Mai could never imagine him having. "S-sorry! I didn't mean to-"

"But you did!" Oliver said loudly yet hushed, as if he were privately yelling at her. He quickly turned away and stormed out of the room. Despite how angry he appeared to be, he shut the door quietly. That only seemed to be crueler. Mai was left there sitting, feeling awful in so many ways. _Why did I have to be such an IDIOT?!_ She placed her face on her knees and tried to hide most of it with her arms. Mai never liked people seeing her when she was upset, even when it was obvious she was. "Mai? What's the matter?" Ron asked in a hushed volume, like parents would to soothe their child. "Nothing much… " She spoke with a wavering voice. " 'Nothing much' wouldn't make you feel like crying…" Ron patted her head gently; this usually made her spill things out. "I made Ol-hih-ver mad at me…" Mai was still trying to suppress her welling tears, for she found it embarrassing that she could cry so easily. "Why would he be mad at you?"

"I touched his bandage…" Mai shook her head. "That's all?" Ron raised an eyebrow. "Perhaps it was painful, was it a recent injury?"

"It didn't look like it, the bandages look kinda old" Mai sniffed. "But he did react somewhat quickly when he woke up."

"Perhaps there's a slightly more sentimental meaning behind it" Ron thought. "No matter what the situation, getting an injury on the face must be a source of trauma…What made you want to poke it anyway?" Mai began to make a few sobbing noises. "Uhh! Besides that, do you know where he is?"

"He went out the room; I don't know where he is…" Mai sniffed again. "How about I go and get him for you?" Ron offered, smiling and still patting her head. She nodded slightly; Ron got up. _I hope Mikayla doesn't give us a lecture over this…_ He slowly opened the door to go outside, but something was blocking him. He gave another small push; whatever was blocking him was gone. He looked around and closed the door. "Don't tell me I have to act all 'parent' for two people today." Ron looked down at Oliver, who was in a fetal position, leaning against the wall. "C'mon you made Mai pretty sad."

A long silence took place, except for some small hiccup sounds. Ron suddenly realized that Oliver was crying as well. In fact, he appeared to be weeping miserably. 'Calm down will you?' Ron wanted to speak but could not. It was as if his body was only allowed to watch Oliver in his misery. The boy kept muttering things as he cried. _What's gotten into him? I don't even know anyone named 'Olivia' here…Perhaps she's someone he knew before he came here. Wait…I didn't even introduce him to Noah yet, so… … I should just get him to talk._"H-hey…Oliver" Ron said as if he were scared. "Look at me, what's wrong?" Oliver remained silent. "Can you please just tell me what's wrong?" The only reply that Ron received was soft hiccups. "… Why are you acting like such a SISSY?! I thought you were too manly to shed TEARS! I guess I overestimated you…"

"They're MANLY tears, you jerk!" The blonde finally responded, revealing his face. "Seriously Oliver, couldn't you have responded sooner?" Ron raised an eyebrow. "Hey, you just tried to provoke me didn't you?" Oliver wiped away his tears. "Apparently it worked." Ron smiled then returned to his plain face. "So why did you get mad at Mai?"

"I wasn't mad at Mai…"

"You weren't? Well, whatever you were feeling, you made Mai feel terrible" Ron squatted down so he could be eye-to-eye with Oliver. "I was mad at myself more than anything…" Oliver said quietly. "Mai reminded me of many things that I wanted to forget…"

"Well, I still don't see the reason behind making her cry." Ron said.

"That wasn't my intention. I just didn't want her to see me cry. I am a MAN after all." The blond boy let out a laugh. Ron remained silent, but then let out a small chuckle. "If you're done shedding those 'manly' tears, How about you apologize to Mai?" Ron got up to open the door. "If we don't get back in the room, Mikayla'll be after our butts"

"I guess…"

Around the end of break-time, based on Ron's estimate, the two made their way to Mai. She was calmly reading a book as if nothing had happened. When they got close enough, she raised her head to look at them. "Oh hi!" She started. "Oliver, I'm sorry for touching your bandage, I didn't mean to offend you."

"I'm the one that should be saying sorry. Apparently I made you feel bad too…" Oliver scratched his head. "So…I'm sorry too. Can we just forget about this and move on?"

"Sure! Anyway, the break's over. You can continue reading this!" Mai handed over the plain-cover book that Oliver had been struggling with. "Not thinking…!" Oliver made an exaggerated reaction and pretended to be sick, causing laughter to occur throughout the room and not just between the three of them.

Once the 'school' session was completed, everyone had supper before heading to bed. "In my opinion, this is one of the best parts of the day!" Ron stretched his arms. "I hear ya!" Oliver laughed. "I wish we could've played a little longer though…" Mai said.

"Play in your dreams!" The two boys replied in unison. "I'm tired!" Oliver added. He opened the door to the room that he would now be sharing with Mai and Ron. It looked very cozy, despite being a fairly small room. It was comparable to the size of rooms you see at camps. There were six beds on the left side; only three of them had pillows and sheets, all with a lavender-like color. _I guess Miss Mikayla prepared for me then…_. On the right side there were three baskets. The first two were empty, but the third appeared to have something in it. Upon further inspection, it was Oliver's clothing that Mikayla had taken when he took a bath. _Oh wow…_ Before he could even touch them, something light was thrown at him. "You better change into your sleep attire."

"Sleep attire?" Oliver asked, holding up the plain light-green gown. "…One-size-fits-all?" He asked.

"It's cheaper and easier that way" Ron said, already on his own mattress. "I see…" Oliver was about to change, but then he remembered a girl was in the room. "What're you waiting for?" Mai asked, tilting her head. She was already in her gown as well. _When did they even put those on?_ "All you have to do is put the gown on first, and then take your other clothes off from under…just keep on your undergarment…" She let out a weak chuckle.

"Right…"Oliver said. _As if I even had one to begin with…_

Time seemed to pass by slowly; Oliver laid there on his mattress. The moonlight shone just the right amount for comfort; his new roommates slept peacefully beside him. How could one be not able to sleep so comfortably in this situation after sleeping on a hard floor for as long as he could remember? Perhaps it was guilt that his two dear friends would never be able to experience this with him, or that the other one more than likely has it better than him, even more likely to the point where he was just a distant memory? Maybe it was the ticking of the clock that bothered him, for he had never slept with one before; its sound would be bothersome for those with excellent hearing, such as Oliver, would it not? No, it was not because of that. It was because he was too grateful for these moments of peace that remained so consistent, unlike those in his past. He wanted to enjoy this tranquility until the very moment he drifted off into sleep, knowing and hoping that this would be his days from now on.

Meanwhile, during a time the sky was dark grey, Nathaniel, Hannah, and Mikayla all sat at a table together, appearing to discuss something. "You really don't have much information on him do you?" Mikayla looked at all the blanks in the form Nathaniel attempted to fill out. "He isn't my kid; I don't know much about him" He tapped his finger trying to recall if there was anything else he could remember. "Didn't he say something about his birthday being before Christmas?" Nathaniel suddenly recalled. "Yes, but that's still a little vague…" Mikayla bit her lip, thinking. "Perhaps I can just 'make' his birthday the 21st since that is when the money starts coming here."

"Oh right, you people rely on donations, correct?" Hannah asked.

"Not just that, the 'officials' of this place send us a payment twice a year for maintenance" replied Mikayla as she filled in Oliver's new 'birthday'. "Since you brought up donations…" Mikayla said with a grin, causing Nathaniel to laugh. "I'll see what I can give, but not right now." He leaned back into the chair to relax a bit. "I understand…but I must ask you something Nathaniel" Mikayla said, looking directly at the man.

"What is it?"

"What caused you to bring Oliver? For the years that I've known you, this is abnormally benevolent"

"…I guess you're right about that. Perhaps my daughter's return put me in a good mood."

"Oh, do you mean that little girl of yours that went missing for a couple of years? What was her name again?" Mikayla began to put away the papers. "Ainsley, she's now about nine years of age." Nathaniel smiled. "You know, today was the first day in a long time that I managed to spend quality time with my wife and daughter."

"That sounds lovely!" Mikayla said. "Nothing is more joyful than spending time with your loved ones!"

"I agree with you completely." Nathaniel said. "I had completely forgotten how precious those times are. Perhaps that's why my daughter disappeared. I have considered leaving the business to someone else I trust. That way I can spend more time with them."

"The idea sounds nice, but aren't you still young? I figured a few more years would do before retirement." Mikayla asked as she finished with putting away the papers. "I agree with Miss Mikayla. It would be a little too soon, wouldn't it? Are you even sure who that person you trust is?" Hannah entered the discussion, indirectly pleading for him to keep working. "If you're thinking about your pay, Miss Hannah, then don't worry. I had that already planned for all of my workers. I have enough fortune to last for generations."

"That does sound like a good plan Nathaniel! Settling down would make happier days!" Mikayla grinned wider.

"Happier days for my daughter, I'm hoping. Someday, I want her to be as happy as she was back then, or perhaps as happy as I've made Oliver now?"

"Yes, I wish you sincere luck, Lord Harris." Mikayla put her hands together as if she were about to pray.

…

"_You're going to need it…_" Hannah whispered with the volume of stagnant wind.


	14. Chapter 14: Surprise

OK guys! Sorry for taking AGES to update. Prove that you forgive me by leaving at review (PLEASE?)! Uhhh...There was school, my computer dying on me, and other things that kept me from typing so...heh.

It was an early summer morning; the sun had just begun to rise. Mikayla did not actually see this, but she knew, for it was instinct to begin cooking in the morning. She got up even earlier than usual because she was going to attempt something for the first time: pancakes. _They consist of flour, water, and...other things to sweeten them right?_ She intensely focused as she began to mix the ingredients together. She could not risk messing up with the little amount of ingredients she had at disposal. Despite the amount of stress that task would be, she was very delighted to know that this would result as a very joyful moment with the thirty-one children she considered her own.

Later that same morning, Oliver stood directly in front of the clock, watching each second pass by. He knew that Mikayla was cooking something sweet; his sense of smell always knew how to tease him. He was twisting the sleeping gown given to him on his first day with his fingers, suppressing his anticipation. It was only a mere ten minutes before 9 o' clock, yet those ten minutes alone seemed to be forever. Oliver had grown accustomed to waiting each morning, for Mikayla always sent him back to his room when he came down too early. However, the second the clock struck nine, Oliver dashed downstairs, leaving his roommates asleep once again.

As always, he headed straight for the kitchen where Miss Mikayla was. "Good morning Oliver, how are you today?" She greeted as she set up the plates. "Pancakes?! Cool!" Oliver was looking over each plate. "I asked '_how are you_'" Mikayla lightly hit Oliver's hand with the wooden spoon, resulting in the boy flinching away from the plates. "You know the drill Oliver. Get changed, pass out the plates, and _then_ I'll allow you eat your breakfast."

"Yes Miss Mikayla…" Oliver replied deadpanned. He ran back up the stairs and went into his room. Then, Oliver shook both Ron and Mai, telling them to wake up. Directly after, he went to the basket that had his clothes. He pulled out the dark blue jacket, the white shirt, and black shorts. Oliver could never get over how much they resembled the ones he wore for a long time in his life. Then again, he could not have thought of a better present for his 'birthday'. He kept the same hat though, for it was in too good of a condition to be replaced, but it did have to be cleaned. After changing, Oliver ran back downstairs, followed by Ron and Mai. The three helped Mikayla set up the plates for the tables; then they began to eat.

"Miss Mikayla, why did you make pancakes? I've never recalled you doing that before." Ron asked, smiling as he ate. "I'm not complaining though, these are _delicious_!"

"I'm glad you like it! I decided to make them for a certain occasion." said Mikayla, who was now leaving the room. "'A certain occasion'? What's she talking about?" asked Oliver. "How could you not know?" Mai raised an eyebrow. "It never came up in conversations, so don't look at him that way" Ron wiped his mouth. "My birthday is tomorrow. Miss Mikayla tends to make something special the day before everyone's birthday."

"Oh really? I don't remember anything special being made for mine." Oliver said right before he resumed eating his pancake. "That's because Christmas was right around the corner at the time! She didn't see the point of making two sets of special food." Mai explained. "Plus you would have guzzled any food down special or not._Your_ definition of a 'special' meal is when you're allowed 'thirdsies'" Ron chuckled. "Sorry, I can't really defend you on that one." Mai shrugged. Oliver sat there blankly before responding "Ohhhhh…no wonder she let me have thirdsies that day!"

"A little late aren't you?" Ron and Mai said in perfect unison, causing them to flinch away from each other. "If I got a snack for every time you two did that I'd be fatter than walrus!" Oliver laughed. He could not help but do so since Ron and Mai seemed to have the same thoughts for the past few months. _Mai doesn't seem to hit him as much as she used to either…_

By the time the trio was finished with their food, the other youngsters came downstairs for breakfast. Because of this, they had first dibs on the ball. It was typically the advantage to have the ball first. Oliver passed the ball to Ron. "How about it birthday boy?" Oliver tipped his hat to issue his challenge. "Why of course Ollie-boy!" Ron teased. "I said never call me that again!" The blonde hissed. "Then how about making me regret it?" Ron grinned. "Maybe I'll just sit out on this one…" Mai thought aloud. She and the other kids knew that when Ron and Oliver were having a 'face-off', it's better to keep your head rather than participate. The more they got to know each other, the more competitive they got. Mai had to act like a babysitter to calm them down several times. For some unknown reason, the two boys didn't need their daily morning lecture. They even handed the ball off to the next person that came in. Mai was happy yet shocked that they did so, but she did not show signs of the ladder trait. "'Kay then, how about we go do some doodles instead if you two won't play a ball game?" She grinned as she wrapped her arms around both boys' necks. "Sure" said Oliver who felt like he was slowly being strangled.

The place to draw 'doodles' was the schoolroom. During most of the day, no one was in it, so those who weren't in a mood for playing often just came here. Ron was anything but a skilled artist. He considered stick figures to be his masterpiece. Mai's skills were fairly good, but she was not that passionate in drawing every day. The main reason she liked going to draw in the schoolroom was to see what Oliver was going to draw. Many of her pictures were left incomplete ever since the day Oliver picked up a pencil. For some odd reason, he really enjoyed drawing. It was like his excuse for ignoring his surroundings. _What should I draw today?_ The boy thought to himself. _I've already drawn James several times...but maybe I could do an improved version!_ Oliver let out a small whistle, cuing his favorite pet to get on the table. He instantly began to draw James' outline; he still managed to keep the proportions correct even though the goldfinch moved a lot. Oliver's talent for art is quite astonishing, considering the fact that all his hands have ever been used for is stealing and eating. Each art piece he drew grew slightly more realistic for each attempt. _Oh, I should start drawing something myself_ Mai thought. _Now what should I draw?_ She looked around the room, wondering what her subject would be. At that moment, she saw Ron napping on the table, drool slowly coming out of his mouth. _I feel so sorry for that paper!_ Mai giggled; she began to draw Ron's outline.

"Finished..." Oliver said right before raising up his completed picture. It was in fact better than 'the previous James', but it wasn't quite realistic yet. "Not bad Oliver, it looks amazing!" Mai stared at his picture for a few seconds, and then went back to sketching her own. Suddenly, Mikayla opened the door; her face was plain if not serious. "Children, please get changed into your nicer clothes"

"What? I thought we had church a few days ago..." Ron mumbled as if he were talking to himself. "No, it's not church..." Mikayla paused, not sure if what she said would be considered good news or bad news. "A couple has come for adoption...you all have to present yourselves properly"

"Adoption?!" Mai accidentally shouted. "Why not just show them the younger ones?" Her face became noticeably sadder. "It would not be fair to the others" Mikayla said plainly. "Please get dressed"

"But this is the nicest set of clothes I have!" Oliver said, tugging on his favorite outfit.

"Of course I'll have to make an exception for that" Mikayla replied. "Now get going all of you" She left the room without saying another word; the trio followed her silently._Adoption? I know this is an orphanage, but this is so sudden! I feel like this more of a home to me than anywhere now…_ Oliver looked at his two friends in front of them. Judging by their faces, they must be having the same thoughts as him.

It seemed that Mikayla told the trio to change last, because all of the young-lings were in fancier attire long before them. Mai and Ron's fancy attire actually left him very surprised. Mai looked kind of…cute. Her white skirt was slightly above her knees; her hair was tied up. The shirt she wore was the same light orange color that she typically wore, but this shirt had more accessories to it. There was a white under shirt that covered what would become her cleavage in a few years, and she wore a simple white pearl necklace. As for Ron, he _almost_looked his age. He wore a dark-blue sweatshirt, along with matching dress pants. This was one of the first times Oliver had seen the teenager without his hat; he hair was even combed. Additionally, his ponytail was lowered. _Am I the only one that__**didn't**__go through some dramatic transformation?!_Another thing that Oliver found odd was that even though the kids were now dressed well, they went back to their casual playing. _So…look good and have fun? That's how you get adopted? These customs are so strange…_

"So now what?" Oliver asked Ron, who then replied: "Whatever, but we can't draw"

"Why?" The blonde asked. "Everyone's back to doing what they were already doing"

"We have to be where we can be seen." Ron gestured towards Mikayla, who was talking to a brown-haired couple. "We can't just stay out of rank or the 'supervisor' will fry our butts for it"

"Sounds fun Ron. How 'bout we try it?" Oliver nudged. "No" Ron refused. "Like she said, it wouldn't be fair to the others"

"When did you get so mature?" Mai butted in the converse. "This really isn't like you Ron"

"I've been here for a good decade, so I feel like I would be clinging to this place for too long if I rebelled against adoption…but I definitely would hate to leave."

"Me too" Mai and Oliver replied. A few moments of silence passed. "Why are we still standing here? Let's go play a game!" Mai rushed outside, causing the two boys to look at each other. They both let out a sigh and followed her.

The amount of time spent playing ball was not long, for Mikayla called all thirty-one of the kids to come line up in front of the other two adults. This was yet another thing that Oliver found strange: How could kids be okay with strangers taking them away? Some of them had faces that screamed 'Pick me!' while the brown-haired woman glanced over each one of the kids. Oliver felt shivers as she looked at him, for reasons he did not know. The woman then bent down and faced a short and very young boy, who had matching dark hair. "How about you little Noah? Would you like a family?"

"Yes, please~!" His face practically glowed with happiness. So much happiness, it left a small sting in Oliver's heart. _I bet Noah really wanted to have a family…_ Oliver must have blanked out for a while, because before he knew it, Mikayla had already handed the couple the papers containing Noah's information; the three had left, Noah holding on to his foster mother's hand.

Despite losing a friend, many of the kids went back to their casual routine. Some of the young-lings were noticeably saddened by Noah's departing. Apparently the adoption process takes a long time, because it was a mere few minutes before dinner. To Oliver, that was a _very_ good thing. The meal for that day was, surprisingly, mostly meat and bread. Mikayla is the type to shower all of her consumers with a variety of veggies, but all that there was for today was some carrots on the side. The meat was amazingly seasoned; it was wrapped in bread, which was buttered just the right amount for an even better flavor. _I can only imagine the amount of greens she has in store for us tomorrow…_ thought Oliver, who had not spared another thought before diving into his plate.

The next day, shortly after breakfast time, Ron woke up. Seeing how Mai was not next to him, he instantly realized that he had overslept. _I'll just pray that the blonde piglet didn't eat my food!_ Ron quickly took a bath, changed, and headed towards the dining area. It was empty, and the play area was as well. _Wait what? This is crazy!_ Ron ran to the schoolroom, trying to find any sign of people there. Nobody was in either one of the school rooms; to add to his fears: Oliver wasn't even in the kitchen. _Where the heck is everybody?!_ Ron continued checking every single room; his speed grew for each empty room. He ran down to the main hallway, in front of the building's entrance, panting and sweating. Once his panic episode was completed, he started to think more clearly._This must be planned. There's absolutely no way that thirty-one people can just disappear into thin air. I bet this is their attempt of a birthday surprise._ Ron began to pace around, wondering what he should do next. _Looking for them would be far too much effort. I'll just look for something to eat._

Ron reminded himself so much of Oliver when he began to look for food to eat. He could not find anything that was prepared, so he just settled for eating plain bread. It tasted better to him than he had expected. Once he closed the storage up, he noticed a note on the cupboard. It read:

_To Ron,_

_The kids and I are going to be gone for a while. Sorry if this is inconvenient, but I need you to do a few things:_

_1. Purchase milk, our supply is running out. (The money is next to the basket mentioned later)_

_2. Get the basket on the kitchen counter (it has a red cloth above it) and deliver it to the elderly woman at the market place. This is my way of thanking her._

_-Mikayla_

_P.S Happy birthday! I can't believe your 17 already!_

"Of _course_she still makes me work on my birthday" Ron let out a sigh and began to work on his task.

Meanwhile, at some other building, Mikayla was working on preparations while trying to babysit at the same time. Once she failed at that, she asked Mai, Oliver, and some of the other older kids to act as 'supervisors'. "How long is this going to take?" Oliver asked Mikayla. At first, she ignored Oliver, but then answered: "As long as it takes. I'm trying to see if I can finish within this hour, but so far that seems impossible" Mikayla was mixing some type of batter in a bowl. Her facial expression was a mix of both happiness and focus. Mai tugged on Oliver's arm and gestured that they should leave Mikayla to her business. "So what was the point of us ALL coming here?" Oliver asked Mai, who answered: "Because she's gonna need a LOT of extra hands when she gets back" Mai explained. "For the birthdays of the older kids, she makes entire feasts!" This statement made Oliver stare into space; in a matter of seconds, he was drooling.

"You never seem to have your mind off of food" Mai giggled, and tried to get him back into reality by snapping her fingers a few times. "So we have to carry food back?" Oliver asked, grinning. "I'm pretty sure that Miss Mikayla will purposely make you carry something that _isn't_ edible" Mai laughed. "Darn" Oliver said, making another exaggerated facial expression. "I guess I'll just imagine eating for now"

"Try not to drool on anything!" Mai teased. There was a short moment of silence; Oliver asked another question. "So what's Ron doing? Is he trying to look for us?"

"Miss Mikayla says that she set up some distractions just for him!" Mai smiled mischievously.

"Some birthday present" Oliver said.

At the marketplace, Ron was waiting in line to purchase milk. The old woman seemed somewhat busier than usual, because there were never this much people when Ron was around._Then again, I've never come this early either_ Ron thought. Once he made the purchase, he handed the basket to the elderly woman and turned around to leave. "Oh wait!" The woman called. "Huh? What is it?"

The old woman said: "You delivering me this reminded me that I was supposed to give my grandson this package. I am very busy today, so can you do this for me?" She pulled out an ordinary brown box. "The home where he lives is across the stream south of this place. It's very hard to miss since it's the only house you'll see for miles"

"Uh...Okay" Ron accepted the box, hesitantly. "Well then, I'll see you!" Ron politely smiled and left quickly.

Ron began to head to the house, directly after figuring out which direction was south. _Oh! I've been here before. I remember playing near this stream when I was a kid! I don't remember any house though._ Not long after his thought, he realized that there was a small building in the distance. "Oh wow! This place was closer than I thought!" He began running towards the building. He quickly learned that his eyes were deceiving him. The building was farther away; it was much larger as well. "Oh wow" he accidentally said aloud. He walked up the stairs that led to the dark-brown wooden door. Ron stood a little while to regain his breath, and then he knocked on the door. It took less than a minute for someone to answer. The man was quite tall; he towered over Ron, causing the boy to smile nervously. _I really am short..._ "Uh...uh-" _Say something!_ His subconscious yelled at him. _What was that old woman's name again?_ "Oh! Mrs. Catherine asked me to deliver this package to her grandson...sir"

"I see! Why thank you!" The man turned around and called out "Tommy!" A few moments passed; a young boy ran to the front door. "Yes Father?" The boy glanced at Ron curiously before facing his father. "This young lad has something for you!" The man crouched down to his son's height as he spoke. "Really?" Tommy had let out a smile. "What is it mister?"

"I don't know. It's from your grandmother, not me." Ron handed the box to the young boy. The little boy wasted no time opening it. Inside, there was a toy set.

"Thank you so much!" Tommy did a toothy grin as he said this. "Again, this is from your grandmother, not me." The boy didn't seem to pay much attention to Ron at this point. He was simply messing around with the new toys he had just been given. "Mister, can you play with me?" Tommy looked at Ron. "I-...uh" Ron could barely answer. He wanted to say 'no', but the boy's face was too cute to resist. "If your father allows it I guess..." Ron rubbed the back of his head nervously. "Sure, I don't mind" The man said. "Tommy doesn't get to play with many young people"

"Okay..." _What did I just get myself into?_ Ron thought to himself.

Once Ron was able to get away from Tommy and his 'needs', he began to head back home. "Seriously, if the kid's so damn 'lonely', then just send him outside!" Ron muttered several other statements of that nature on his way back. He looked up at the sky, noticing that the sun had set. "Really?!" He began running back, but not too fast. He knew better than to wear himself out. The building appeared to still be silent, from an outsider's perspective at least. _You're kidding right? There's no way they would be gone that long…_ Ron opened the door, only to walk into a hallway with no light. This made Ron think that he really was alone, since he never turned on the lights in the morning. He felt for the light switch that was in the middle of the hallway, and the lights nearly blinded him since his eyes were adjusting to the darkness. _I bet this is their attempt to 'surprise' me… Now where would they be?_ Ron paced around, imagining possible places. His very first thought was the dining area; after all, it made more sense than anything. Knowing this, he nonchalantly walked to where he expected he would find the other 31 residents. Once again, he had to feel for a light switch. He spent over a minute searching for it, because he forgot it was outside the room and not in it. Once he went through his moment of feeling like an idiot, he walked back into the dining area.

Ron was now more annoyed than anything. It would've been nice to simply have the so-called surprise where you expected it for once. He decided that a walk outside would calm him down, so he headed to the play area. The door was closed, just like it had been in the morning. _They'll probably be back soon, so a little walk wouldn't hurt to-_

"… … …"

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY!"

Ron stood there in pure shock. The whole play area was decorated in a way that only middle class people could manage. In other words, the place looked decent, at the very least; to Ron, the place looked amazing. There was a whole table filled with foods that would only be eaten for leisure, very sweet foods that Mikayla would never cook. The sight of the cake made Ron completely ignore the fact that among the 'happy birthday's, there was someone, more than likely Oliver, who yelled 'moron'. Instead, he wanted to laugh at the faces of the little children who were staring at the cake.

"Well come on! Are you going to faint or eat some cake?" Oliver yelled, and many others either nodded eagerly or simply looked at him.

"Will you ever get your mind off of that fat stomach of yours?!" Ron imitated Oliver's tone, causing everyone to laugh.

"Birthday boy gets first slice!" Ron ran over to the table.

After stuffing their faces with desserts, the kids began their umpteenth game of ball. Yet another new thing for that day was the ball they were using. It was much cleaner, thanks to its new condition, and it bounced much better than the older ball ever had. Every single person passed the ball to Ron at least once; Oliver always aimed for Ron's face, without fail. Ron would occasionally pass the ball to Mai, just to give himself a break from Oliver's constant challenging. Despite this, Oliver managed to get his hands on the ball again. _Hehe! I'd like to see him catch__**this**__one!_ The blonde giggled mischievously as he positioned his arms for this 'special' throw, one that he prepared at the last minute just for Ron's birthday. The round object rocketed towards Ron, causing him to panic. Instead of trying to catch it, he hit it back in the opposite direction. At least, that was his intention. The result, however, was the brand-new ball being launched into the air, making it look like a dot in the dusk sky. All of the young ones watched as it fell in the distance.

"Oops…" Ron and Oliver managed to say in perfect unison. "I'll get it!" Mai shouted, after she sprinted into the woods. "Hey, you shouldn't just run there when it's about to get dark!" 'Birthday boy' yelled, right before chasing his younger friend. "Hey, don't just leave me out!" Oliver chased after Ron, without even thinking about the others who would be left waiting. His 'rivalry' with Ron often distracted him from those types of things.

Mai, Ron, and Oliver looked almost everywhere they could for the ball. "There's no way it could just disappear like that!" Mai said, trying to encourage the boys to keep searching, even though they made it clear they had given up. "It's already getting dark! We can just look for it tomorrow" Ron said. "But wouldn't everyone want to continue the game?" Oliver asked.

"Maybe _you_ would want to continue the game, but I'm pretty sure that _they_ just want to see us in one piece" Ron replied deadpanned. "Aw c'mon! Just a couple more minutes of searching wouldn't hurt too badly would it?" Mai gave a 'beaming' face, showing that she was more than determined to go searching again. "Maybe we could pretend that we're looking for treasure to make it more fun!" She was clearly suppressing her excitement.

"You sound like your seven right now Mai…" Ron said, right before laughing. "I guess a few more minutes wouldn't hurt us."

The trio once again began their search, but this time they went out a little further. The moonlight made it easier for them to see what was where, but there was still no ball in sight. Suddenly Mai called out: "I see something!", and she pointed to a distant tree. The two boys looked in the direction she was pointing; they saw some whit poking out of the tree. "Could that be the ball?" Mai asked. "Let's go check it out!" Oliver replied. Ron and Mai ran ahead of Oliver; Ron was in the lead since he thought the ball game would resume again. "Ha, I guess this day didn't turn out so bad after all—" Ron quickly stopped in his tracts, causing Mai to accidentally bump into him. "Hey, what's wro-" Ron slapped his hand over her mouth before she could finish talking. Mai noticed that Ron was shuddering, despite her shock from the slap, but she failed to notice Oliver behind her, acting the same way as Ron. The only difference was that the look on his face was filled with confusion, along with a betrayed look, with his own personal horror. 'Why are you to acting so weird?' She wanted to say, but she found out before she could even form the full statement in her mind. She saw blood: Blood that they could not see before all over the other side of the tree, belonging to a man who a fancy, and formerly-white suit.

_That couldn't be…Nathaniel?!_ Oliver was struck with disbelief by what he was seeing, and it only got worse as he saw the other person looming over Nathaniel, a woman wearing a dark grey dress, holding a dirtied knife. Her pale hair contradicted the dark and bloody scene; her eyes seemed to have a deadly red tint. The devilish smile that was on her face vanished; and she began to lift up the body, more than likely to dispose of it. Ron quickly and needlessly gestured that they get the heck out of the place before they ended up next. Mai managed to keep quiet, but still panicked. She accidentally bumped into Oliver, causing his pet bird to let out one small

_Chirp_.

The woman moved her head in the direction of the three; her eyes widened; Oliver silently whispered:

"Nurse Hannah…why?"


	15. Chapter 15: Final Betrayal, Part 1

My sincere apologies for the oh so long wait. (School happened)

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 15: Final Betrayal, Part 1<strong>

Nathaniel had been trying to see if he could find any more information on Oliver. He had the money to get even the filthiest of secrets from high-class people, so it wasn't as hard for him as some might imagine. However, it was still difficult. "How come his face hasn't turned up in the list of lost children? My daughter was on it…perhaps his parents abandoned him?" Nathaniel scratched his head. _Why am I acting like he's one of my own? It won't benefit me in any material way, so why do I care?_ Once he realized this, Nathaniel laid back in his chair. He rang the bell for Aaron to serve him tea; he continued to think. _I should be thinking more about Ainsley…She's the one that's actually my kin, even though_ _she looks at me as if I were a stranger… What would she like to do today? When she was little, she loved parks. Oh wait, she __**is**__ little. It has become more than difficult to make her smile though. What should I do? Perhaps—_

"Master, here's your tea." Aaron placed down the cup and saucer, and then backed away respectfully. "Thanks" Nathaniel said. "You know…how about you go and take the rest of the day off? You've been loyal to me for a while haven't you?"

"Master, what is with this unexpected kindness? I do not intend to sound discourteous, but you never let me take sudden vacations." Aaron tried to keep his face very straight, hoping that would add to his honest tone. "Well son, I've been thinking about a lot of things: The type of man I've been for years, my profits and losses from that behavior, and how I can fix it all from now until later."

"That sounds like something a man of high standards should be like" Aaron said. "I sincerely thank you…Father. Have a nice day" Aaron left the room without another word.

For the next hour, Nathaniel continued going through papers. He kept true to his plans for retirement. He was already planning each employee's final paycheck. He didn't have the money to make them all millionaires, but he could make them live comfortably for a long time; at the very least, he could pay off their debts, which were the main reason many worked here. The moment he finished Nurse Hannah's, he decided to go visit her, for he remembered that Ainsley visited her regularly. By the time he reached the hallway, Nurse Hannah had stepped out of the room to hold the door for him. "I heard your footsteps" The woman said. "Why thank you" Nathaniel tipped his hat and entered the room. Ainsley sat there quietly, not heeding her father's presence. The 'counseling' that Hannah tried to provide did not appear to have any effect on the young girl quite yet. "So how is my little girl?" Nathaniel let out a benign expression as he faced his daughter. "Her health has been improving since the day of her arrival, yet she still has the same behavioral problems" Nurse Hannah replied, in the blank little girl's stead.

"I was hoping for Ainsley to say that" Her father's statement caused Ainsley to look up at him. "I'm sorry Father, I'm a little bit tired." Ainsley rubbed her eyes to make her statement more convincing. "Well, maybe this will help you with that" Nathaniel placed an apple onto his daughter's hand. "…Pink Lady" Ainsley said quietly, letting out a smile. "It amazes me how you able to name each one I give you, without fail! Even more proof that my adorable daughter is brilliant."

"Nathaniel, I'm sorry if this sounds rude, but I have to continue this session with Ainsley."

"Or you could give yourself a small break, Hannah." Nathaniel never took his gaze away from Ainsley. "I'm sorry, please don't be too angry—"Hannah began to bow, but Nathaniel quickly added:

"I'm not angry in the slightest. I just want to give my workers a break. I've already let Aaron have the rest of the day off." Nathaniel stood up. "I believe that many have worked hard under my care. You are free to take the rest of the day off. So please let me talk to my daughter" Hannah stood there silently; she was clearly hesitating, but then let out a smile. "Okay, I truly appreciate this Master, have a good day"

"You too" said Nathaniel, as Hannah walked out the door.

Hannah closed the door very softly; she stayed outside the room for a few moments. She stared into space as she began to twist part of her nurse attire, her intensity getting harder by the minute. She could hear Nathaniel's voice, trying to sound comforting, as she exhibited this fairly odd behavior, but she did not heed a single syllable. _I better get going…_ She released the now crinkled portion of her uniform and walked down the stairway. She had never taken the time to admire the beautiful architect known as 'Harris Manor'; she continued ignoring it, for it served her no purpose. No form of beauty could compensate for her pain, which she had kept hidden for years. The pain made her take on the job of nursing, nearly a decade ago.

_Her family was barely middle class; to them, simply having food everyday was like a wonderful blessing. Her father's new job made them able to move up higher in class. They even had a decent house, with usable light sources! When they first entered their new home, Hannah's mother had prayed, thanking God for rewarding their hardship. "Wow, there are so many rooms! There are even multiple sleeping quarters!" A younger, much more joyous Hannah had exclaimed. "Calm down, we still have to share a room anyway sis!" Hannah's older brother had said to calm his petite younger sibling. "There are only two rooms meant for sleeping. Mum naturally will share a room with Father." He explained very tersely. "That's okay!" She chimed. "Even one of the two rooms is bigger than the one we all had to share at the old house!"_

"_That's right! I'm just thankful that the prosperous Harris family actually considered hiring me!" Her father let out a joyous laugh before telling everyone to unpack their things._

_ As months passed by, new things were bought for the house to make it look more comely, but there was a price. Hannah's father had rapidly lost a significant amount of his youth, and he complained about his pain while trying to stand up straight. The family's concern was noticeable, yet no one could project it. Not even his wife could make him quit his factory job, for it would end their days at this amazing house. Instead, Hannah would just try her best to wish her father well. _

_ On the way to the factory, which was about a half-mile away, there were multiple crossroads. This would be difficult to navigate for most people, since there are many turns. Each turn Hannah's father tried to ignore his back pain and continued walking, but that became harder to do as he got closer. Once he reached the final turn, a wagon rushed by. Because he was in a bad condition, he was unable to react fast enough, and thus was hit by it._

_ The accident was very traumatizing to the family. It was amazing that Hannah's father even managed to survive for as long as he did. Hannah stood over her father's deathbed as her mother tried to negotiate with the man at the front door. "Please, give us some time!" Hannah heard her mother said. She was more than likely talking about their house payments, for they were coming up very soon. What Hannah could not understand was why they weren't being given extra time, considering their situation. Her brother had even offered to work in her father's place, but that was rejected as well, because there was no way he could handle heavy lifting. "Why can't you just let the damn payment slide?! Our father just __**died**__! Can't you just think about the hardship people have to go through instead of your own money-grubbing hands?!" Her brother had clearly lost it at that point; he had to be sent to his room, but he continued mutter curses behind hysterical tears. What stung more than anything was when that man said: "This home is reserved for our workers, and none of you are under that category, so we have to find replacements. If you need assistance in packing your things, then here's my card. I'm only doing my job; I can't help you with anything else. If there's nothing else for you to say, then goodbye. Have a nice day."_

_Have a nice day? How could that possibly happen? Hannah thought as the endless tears finally managed to surface on her face._

_ The days that passed felt like a blur at that point. Hannah, who was once so cheerful, acted dead both inside and out. She couldn't even remember how her mother disappeared afterwards, or why she was separated from her brother. One thing that stuck in her memory, making her mind feel like it was rotting, was the name of the man that ruined her life, because she saw the card he gave to her mother, crumpled on the ground._

"Nathaniel…I wonder if he ever truly noticed me" The nurse said as she walked to her home. "Being nice to me now, so many years too late" She muttered to herself. She changed out of her uniform, and then looked through her wardrobe. She pulled out a dark grey dress and gloves of similar design to the one she wore at her father's funeral. She also looked through a chess nearby her desk. Inside were sharp daggers, a pistol, and a container full of bullets. _Why am I suddenly acting like this?_ Hannah questioned herself as she lightly stroked the sharp blade. She then remembered the conversation Nathaniel had with Aaron, along with the one he had with her. Her blood began to boil, but then she calmed down, slightly. _I shouldn't be acting on impulse…it would be better if I waited for an advantage._ Hannah continued to think about her plan while she equipped any necessary tools for her…'task' .She tried her best to recall what Nathaniel's daily routine was, besides pestering his daughter to 'get closer' to her. She suddenly realized his schedule was very inconsistent. _Now what do I do?_ After a few more minutes of thought, she decided that visiting Aaron would be her best bet. He lived close by, for employees were placed near their work area for convenience.

Before she headed to his home, she put on an overcoat to conceal her weapons. She could see through the window that he was leaning against a chair, presumably sleeping. _He'll ruin his back that way!_ Hannah pounded on the door, enjoying the fact that she was causing a ruckus. Aaron paid no heed to Hannah's mischief and simply opened the door. "What is it Miss Hannah? Were you granted the day off as well?" Aaron asked.

"Well…"

"And why are you dressed that way? Don't you feel hot under that, or are you heading off to mourn for someone?"

"Let's not focus on that topic." Hannah said, dominating the rest of the talk. "Do you know what Nathaniel's schedule is for today? What times is his schedule 'blank', or what times would he be heading near the marketplace area?" She looked right into his eyes; he wanted to question why she needed this information. Nevertheless, he decided to tell her. "He plans on spending the bulk of the day with his family. In the afternoon, he deals with business affairs…"

"At the marketplace?" Hannah asked.

"Yes, that's why I brought it up…" Aaron stated stolidly. "The rest of the day is his free time. Is that all you need to know?"

"Yes~! You were very helpful." Hannah nodded, provoking Aaron to ask: "Why do you need to know—"

"Goodbye, I'll see you later!" Hannah smiled and waved, right before disappearing from his sight.

The joyful expression she used to speak with Aaron was nonexistent. She blankly stared at the path she was taking. _It will be a long wait before afternoon, perhaps I should rest. Yes, I could clear my head and be that much more efficient when the time comes._ And so she waited until afternoon. The marketplace has moderate traffic around these times, so it was wise to watch your step. Hannah eyed through the crowd, looking for the man she despised so badly. "Hmmm" She grew impatient; she also would have to think of a way to lure him away. _Using my body to do so, like on those bums, wouldn't work. I would probably have to work on some other method, after he's done working. Before I even do that, I have to find him._ As she thought out her plan, she saw a familiar white suit, sitting in a chair, separated from most of the crowd. _This looks like some stupid interview setup. I really am going to have to wait._ Hannah groaned in her head and headed towards a nearby tree to lean against. That way she could still be somewhat comfortable and still have a good view of Nathaniel. The wait seemed to be endless, and the sky grew noticeably darker in shade as people began to leave. At least Nathaniel had the privilege of taking breaks from his job. Hannah's task did not grant her such freedom. When the sun had completely set, the men that Nathaniel was sitting with stood; they all began stacking up their papers and saying their goodbyes, based on Hannah's assumption at least. _Some someone took his sweet time…now I need some sort of alibi._ Hannah looked around through the marketplace, trying to find some task that would make her seem casual. She then remembered that old woman who always needed help with something now and then. Hannah went over to find Mrs. Catherine, but still kept close eye on Nathaniel's position.

Mrs. Catherine should have retired years ago, but if she did, then no one in the area would be selling dairy. Around this time of dusk, she began packing to leave. "Mrs. Catherine, do you need any help with that?" Hannah asked, trying her best to sound genuine. The old woman turned around. "Why of course, you can help me anytime! Please start with those boxes I've already packed. You remember where my house is right?"

"Yes I do." Hannah smiled and pretended that she was going to actually put away the boxes, but Mrs. Catherine would not see them again.

_Wow that took forever._ Nathaniel thought, looking at his watch. _This was more than likely my most time consuming day! Now what better way to reward myself than with a trip home and—_

"Sir Nathaniel!"

"What?" The man in white looked around for the voice's source, but it was somewhat hard to see people in the moderate darkness. Nathaniel's eyesight was not necessarily perfect.

"Over here!" The voice called again; this time, Nathaniel was able to see a figure waving at him. _Nurse Hannah?_ He thought to himself, wondering why she was here. Hannah shuffled over to where Nathaniel was and said "What a coincidence! I was helping around in the market and I just happened to see you!"

"What a coincidence indeed…" The man let out a small smile. "I was just handling business, the usual."

"I was wondering, would you be willing to help me?" Hannah asked. "With what?" Nathaniel questioned why an overall independent woman like Hannah would ask for help. "I'm simply carrying boxes over to an elderly woman's house. I was testing your consideration when I asked you this favor."

"I see, well, I guess I could help you if it doesn't take you too long! Do you want me to carry the one you are holding?"

"Thank you so much sir!" _He's definitely fallen for my act._ Hannah grinned as she handed the box to Nathaniel. To make the walk over to the woods seem more casual, she continued talking to him, asking about how his day was. Nathaniel would continue talking about his daughter and wife, occasionally mentioning business as a way for transition. _How funny, I'm having a conversation with the man who ruined my life. Then again, I've been working under him for years._ She warily held her hand over the dagger that she had, making sure that she would not raise Nathaniel's suspicion. It was a fairly easy task, but she did not want to risk anything. As they walked, she shifted slightly over to the right, guiding them away from the direction of the house that they were supposedly going to deliver the boxes to. Only then did Nathaniel obliviously ask what she was doing.

"This is a shortcut I like to take, no worries!" Hannah said without looking at him. "But we've been walking for a while—"

"It's only been nine minutes. Perhaps you're not that used to walking." Hannah convincingly lied. "Don't worry, you only have to make one trip. Most of the work was already done."

"Okay then" Nathaniel awkwardly looked down, feeling really out of shape. _Only nine minutes? It certainly feels longer than that!_ Nathanial felt for his watch so that he could get a glimpse of it. He looked at it and confirmed that they have been walking for at least fifteen minutes. _What? Hannah was really off with telling the time—_

_!_

It took milliseconds to process the pain that Nathaniel was feeling; and it took three seconds for him to react to being stabbed. Nathaniel fell back into a fetal position as he held the knife in a way to hopefully lessen the agonizing feeling; He looked up and saw Hannah looking own at him mercilessly, her eyes seemed to be red with angry tears. There was no need for questions, only the need for escape. Nathaniel tried to get up, but felt an 'aftershock' of pain as he did so. His shirt now had a deep red trail from the waist down. In a matter of seconds he was being violently kicked so that he would be lying on his back. He coughed up blood and tried so hard to breathe. Hannah removed the knife from Nathaniel's gut, causing the blood to come out faster. During his last moment, Nathaniel managed to mutter out "Why?", then the dagger was plunged into his chest, making him let out a wet gasp. Hannah twisted the knife and did not stop until Nathanial's body was dormant. Hannah took multiple deep breaths once her task was completed, as if she had forgotten to do so during the process of Nathaniel's murder.

Hannah let out a sneer after wiping away her sweat. She spent no extra time admiring the gruesome efforts of her work; she began to pick up the man's dead body. _Now where do I put the body?_ Hannah thought of one of the streams, or maybe she could find some way to bury the body.

_Chirp_.

_Wha? _Hannah looked around for whatever the sound was. She then saw shadows, shadows that belonged to three young people, all of them had horrified faces. The only face she could recognize was the blonde boy in the dark jacket. Her eyes widened with shock, but she did her best to remain somewhat collected.

_How? _ She thought to herself, but stopped caring.

"_How sad…and I even hoped you would be happy boy Ollie…" _Hannah whispered so melancholically, yet evilly.

...I apologize if this sounds rude, but could you guys **please **review (or at least **comment**) on this story? I'm going out of my way, despite how busy I am to write these chapters. ;_;


	16. Chapter 16: Final Betrayal, Part 2

My views have decreased exponentialy..._perhaps you guys could fix that?_

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><p><strong>Chapter 16: Final Betrayal, Part 2<strong>

There was a moment of dead silence; the three children felt as if their pulse would have exploded at any moment, but instead, it only got faster. A sweat drop rolled down Oliver's neck as he backed away slowly. Experience taught him that if you fled immediately, that would provoke a killer to release its fury, so he examined the woman he once trusted meticulously. _She's dangerously armed. _Oliver thought, resisting the urge to gulp. Before he could devise any type of tactic in his mind, Mai ran away hysterically, almost screaming, but suppressed most of her noises. Once his train of thought was thrown off, Oliver had a small panic; Ron began to run as well. _No, no, NO!_ Oliver sprinted away as fast as he could, feeling an immense amount of discomfort both physically and mentally. He had already caught up with Ron and Mai, but that barely helped anyone except for Hannah, who was giving chase to them.

Not a single word was uttered. All that could be heard was heavy breathing and the scattered sounds of crumpling leaves and snapping twigs as they were trampled over by the four partakers of the dangerous dilemma. _What am I doing? What are __**we**__ doing? Oh why must our timing be so horrible?! _The three kids unanimously went down the leafy path to the right. It had several turns and obstacles, such as branches, so they hoped that would give them a lead against the woman in dark grey, since they were used to rough play, though not to a deadly extent. No one heeded the pain that his or her feet felt, for that would easily be preferred over death, one way or another.

Time felt as if it froze as the sharp thundering noise sounded, followed by a scream. _MAI! _Ron would have shouted if he had the chance, but that was not the case. He took a cursory glance at the inane woman who had shot his closest friend since childhood, then immediately picked up the fallen girl who held her bleeding spot, sobbing as she felt unbearable pain. _She has to get attention __**now**__! _The two boys thought, but they felt hopelessly terrified, especially Ron since he now had to carry weight on his shoulders. If there was not a time limit that determined life or death, Ron would have said _'I'll get her back home, or to some type of doctor!'_ Regardless, those words would have been pointless, for Oliver would know why Ron would suddenly change direction as they proceeded to run for their lives. He also knew that following Ron would have defeated the disheartening purpose of splitting up: One path would be pursued by a killer, and another would be temporarily safe. Since both boys were fair sprinters, this strategy would be beneficial for Mai's depleting health, even if it were for one moment. Despite his understanding, Oliver would have never wished to be alone. _Please get out of this safely…_ Oliver silently prayed, for he could not imagine losing two people dear to him for a second time.

At this point, Oliver could not tell where he was running, nor for how long he was doing so. All that mattered was that he had to get away from danger. Apparently, Hannah had chosen to pursue Oliver, for the blond was the much faster target. She knew that if she had just killed the dark-haired couple (her assumption based off Ron's reaction), Oliver would have made it to some type of authority and reported her, completely ruining the plot she had set for so many years. Therefore, the pursuit continued; the path became more rugged as they ran. For multiple times the two had to duck branches, and their breaths became more like frequent wheezes. Finally, Oliver was able to find a possible passage for escape: It was a narrow dive for a stream. _Worst case scenario is that I either fall to my death or drown…It still beats getting shot!_ Oliver leaped the best he could, and had landed on all fours, accidentally breathing in some water as he tried to get up. After coughing that up and regaining his senses, Oliver had rejuvenated speed. Hannah was sadly correct to choose Oliver as the faster target. _Due to her adult size, she'll have a harder time getting down! I'll use this as an opportunity to hide! _

Hiding from death would be no laughing matter, anyone would agree, including Oliver, a boy that has done so at least once before in his life. He remembered that the first time was not nearly as serious as this one. He was about seven or eight years of age and much more easily terrified when this event occurred. He was hiding in the barrels of food storage while some man with a sword was looking for him. In the end, some poor young sailor got the boot while Oliver made Scot-free, with food. Despite reflecting on his adventurous times as a thief, Oliver remained completely focused on his task. His legs ached, he was more so wet because of his sweat rather than the water, and his bandages proved useless for his cut up legs and feet. Less than a meter away, Oliver saw another small descend into a 'cave' that had a giant dead tree as its roof. His plan was to hide himself among the darker grasses rather than the rocks, just in case there was the need to run again. _I would surely be cornered if I hid near those boulders…_Oliver took slow and steady breaths, more silent than the stagnant wind.

Meanwhile, Ron, at a jogging pace, was heading back to any safe place he could find. He scrutinized every detail of the surround area, trying to see if any place was familiar. After the quick inspection, he knew he was lost. _Damn it why?! Mai doesn't have much time…_ At that thought, Ron glanced at his unconscious friend; she was going pale. _No… oh no-no-no-no-no!_ Ron gently placed her down against a tree; he checked for the few signs of life that he knew. Mai still had but a weak pulse, her breathing was slightly inconsistent, and her blood was clearly still draining. _You better not die on me Mai! Please…_ Ron removed his shirt and a small part of Mai's to reveal her wound. At first he wanted to hurl up his birthday cake, but then he snapped himself out of that_._ Without any regret, he tore up one of his favorite shirts and turned it into bandages, wrapping each strip around Mai's would so that she could hopefully survive. Once he had used all the cloth he could without overdoing it, Ron put Mai back on his back and began running, this time with more vigor.

At last, Ron had found some form of civilization. In the dark, it had the appearance of a ghost town, but it was actually a pier. After passing by quite a few empty shops, he managed to see a small neighborhood in the distance. Without any hesitation, Ron sprinted over to the house that was the least distance away; he then banged on the front door. The second someone stepped out, Ron let it all out. Even though the doors were closed, pretty much the whole neighborhood was informed, vaguely at the very least. People, some with weapons, began walking out of their doors to see Ron practically screaming in such a panicked state. The last woman to be woken up by this was ironically the first person to react. The instant Vienna saw the injured state of Mai; she ran up to them and shouted to the crowd: "Why are you all just standing there?! The girl's hurt!" Not long after, people ran up and took Mai into the house to be treated; Ron quickly followed them, but he was stopped by a very tall and familiar-looking man.

"Just what on earth happened to her?" He asked with all the seriousness that a person could project. Ron would have ignored him to go see Mai, but the man's grip was too strong for Ron to get out of it without struggle. Despite his seemingly large amount of energy, Ron collapsed the instant he took his next breath. After that, he began to get up slowly, and then walked over to a nearby chair. Then the man once again asked his question.

Most of what the 'birthday boy' said was confusing, for he talked more rushed than formerly; he sounded very tired. "Please calm down" The man finally managed to say. "Speak slowly so that I can write this down"

"Okay…" Ron shook slightly, and then started from the moment the birthday party began, explaining background information such as who he, Mai, and Oliver were and where they were from. "I see…" Miss Greene said as she wiped her hands with cloth.

"What's with that face?" The man asked.

"And how is Mai's condition?" Ron added feverishly.

"As for the girl, I cannot say. According to Louis, our town's doctor, it all depends on her. We've done all we can."

"So this Louis person did the work? Then why are you wiping your hands?"

"I had to dispose of the bullet; I got some blood on my hands." Vienna wished she could have taken back her last statement, for all it did was add to the teen's worry. However, she did not bother trying to make it seem lighter than it was. Sometimes reality just had to be accepted. "As for the reason my face was the way it was…" Miss Greene continued. "I just was caught a little off guard when I heard the name 'Oliver'…You would remember that boy wouldn't you Sheriff?"

"It's hard to forget, but the focus for now is how we track down the woman, along with who's being pursued."

"I just hope the poor fellow's alright."

Hannah had finally made it down to the stream; Oliver could hear the splashing of her feet. With that, he got into a stance prepared for running in case she saw him, but he hoped that she would overlook his position so that he could finally be free of this horrid suspense. The footsteps grew gradually louder; they echoed as well, hinting that she was getting closer to the cave. Oliver slowly backed away further into the greens of the wilderness, hoping that he was well concealed.

_Where could that one-eyed squirt possibly be? He looked much worn out, so there's no way he could have gotten that far. At least I was able to catch my breath as I got down here._ Hannah checked the amount of bullets she left at disposal, and then proceeded in her search. The darkness did not assist her in anyway whatsoever, which was a good thing for Oliver. After wandering in the woods for minutes, she let out a frustrated groan and multiple curses. She sat down on a nearby dead tree to calm herself down. _What if he's already gone? What if I've already been reported and my name is on the list of criminals now? I'm going to have to find some way to get out of this area, no, Britain entirely. But my boat to France won't be here 'till late the next day!_ _ No person who murders a rich man gets away with it lightly…oh what do I do now? _

A few more moments came and went; Hannah began to admit defeat. She stood up and began to wonder around the area. _What is she doing? Has she found me, or is she confused?_ Oliver thought as he remained in his hiding place. The fact that Hannah was now at a see-able distance made Oliver's heart feel far too heavy. _Just remain dead silent._ Hannah was now slowly leaving, appearing to be as if she were a wandering ghost, a clear sign that she was lost. At that instant, a small figure flew through the dark greens, instantly catching Hannah's sight. Her gaze followed the little bird until it settled near a patch of dark greens. Her curiosity took over as she neared the spot. _WHY JAMES?!_ Oliver slowly began backing away, but Hannah was just getting so much _closer._ Once it made it to the point where the situation was 'do or die', Oliver panicked and began sprinting to the first place he could find. _So there he is! _Hannah grinned as she pulled out her pistol. It was amazing how far Oliver got away when Hannah was ready to shoot, for he was already too far for Hannah to aim properly. _As if I have anything to lose!_ Hannah thought, and shot the gun wildly.


	17. Chapter 17: Final Betrayal, Part 3

My sincerest apologies for taking so long. I can't publish without internet access, so I've been stuck helpless for a while

I sincerely hope you enjoy reading this chapter, it was difficult to write actually.

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><p>Oliver took in a sharp gasp, and then the real pain began to settle. He fell down to the ground and let out his muted cry into the soil. He knew there was no time for tears, so he got up, held his injured arm tightly and continued running. Oliver kept his most vital parts, namely his head, low enough that Hannah would struggle getting a good shot. The blood streaming down from his arm motivated Oliver to go at a faster speed; his fear made him completely unaware that his hat had fallen off when he had lost his balance, or how the teardrops streaming down his face felt chillingly natural at the time.<p>

All that mattered was making it until daylight came, but that felt so far away. Once the sun shines, Oliver would be able to call for help from whatever town he could find, if he made it to a town. Hannah ran with all of her sick heart to prevent that from happening. A few minutes passed, and they were out of the forest-like environment, and into a more flat and dusty area. Oliver's arm no longer had feeling in it, minus the occasional horrible chills in his shoulders; he continued to desperately flee from Hannah, who now appeared to be gaining speed. Upon noticing this, Oliver began a much more intense sprint than before, making his lungs feel like burnt lead. He had now somehow managed to gain about a meter's distance extra from what was already between them, but now his body was exceptionally tired. More than anything, Oliver wanted rest. He slowed down so that he could try to take a quick breath, but abruptly lost his footing.

In one flash, Oliver caught a glimpse of the beginning signs of sunlight as well as the rocky surface he would land on. Once that flash was over, there was only a series of both blunt and sharp pains as he rolled down the slope, which ended with an immense blow to Oliver's head, _nearly_ making him unconscious. Everything seemed hazy in his sight now; his head felt pulverized, at the least. Even though he could barely even think straight, Oliver tried to get back up. He would crawl at the very least as long he could be out of danger, but it seemed his body wouldn't even allow him to do that. Oliver could barely even lift a finger after all of the strain he had put his body through. Finally admitting defeat, Oliver let his body rest as blood dripped from his head.

With an unimaginably sickening smile, Hannah looked down at her now still target. Her plans now seemed attainable once again, even though Oliver and his friends had been a large distraction. She avoided being careless, for that was what got her into such a mess in the first place, as she went down the slope. Her heart pounded as she got closer to the boy, the reason she did not know. Hannah was now hovering over the young boy, who still remained silent.

"How strange is it that the circumstances came down to this?" Hannah looked down. No response occurred. "Are you going to remain quiet until your dead? I'll let you say some last words, since I preferred you much over Nathaniel."

_Nathaniel…_Oliver thought. _Why did she kill him anyway?_

"If you're wondering why I killed that poor excuse of a man, I'll explain it nice and short for you" The woman spoke as if she had read the boy's mind as she reached into her pocket. "Quite simply, he ruined my life when I was much younger, perhaps even younger than you. Considering that nothing he had could redeem my loss, I figured: 'A life for a life'"

"…"

"Hmm? Do you want to say something now?" Hannah asked in monotone, expressing her boredom towards her victim.

"…_You can't just assume…that there's nothing redeemable in life…that there's no chance for things to improve…"_ Hannah grew more frustrated when she heard these words. How could a mere child, a _dying _child, say something so meaningful?

"…_I used to think like you…but then I saw that there are people who are willing to give second chances…people who would hold out for you no matter what, those who would trust you…"_ Oliver let out a hoarse cough. He was as dehydrated as he was worn out. "_Miss Hannah, I never would have thought that you hit a dead end in life...More than anything you looked like you had more opportunity than most people that I knew…"_

"Shut up! What would _you_ know about the world? I didn't give you permission to act all-knowing!" Hannah snapped. Oliver did not respond.

"…It really must be sad for you. I dropped my knife as we ran. I could have been nice by painlessly slitting your throat, but I only have a firearm." There was still no response from Oliver; Hannah had lost the little patience she had left. She grabbed Oliver by the arm and flipped him over so that he was face up. "If it were anyone else, I would have been much crueler." Hannah looked at the frail boy, almost with pity.

Oliver looked Hannah directly in the eye as she placed the gun on the center of his chest. _I wonder if this was how Ainsley felt when they died…_ He thought right before saying: "_You…heartless traitor…"_

The sound of the gunshot could not be heard from the distance.

Mikayla and many of the other residents were horrified once they were notified of the events that took place. Ron was standing by the sheriff, as he had done for the past several hours. Even though he was the one panicking for a while, he took on the task of calming down Mikayla when she was told of Mai's condition. "Mai's health has been improving and the search party for Oliver is heading out as we speak. Please calm down Miss Mikayla, there's no need for tears…" Mikayla wiped away her tears in response, but she still thought there were plenty of reasons for crying. "What are we supposed to do, just wait for the police and do _nothing?_" She muttered to herself, and then suddenly realized: _How would the younger children react to this? No. This isn't the time to be worrying about that…all I can really do now is pray…_

Hannah let out a heavy sigh now that her task was almost complete. _Now I have to dispose of this one too…_She carefully lifted up the body so that she would not fall down the slope in the process. _Resources, resources… _Hannah looked around for somewhere to hide Oliver's body, quickly realizing that the ocean was right by the slope. _Dead bodies float, so I'll need something to weight him down._ Hannah headed down to the end of the slope, where the ground was like a beach, though a tad unstable. Oliver's body was dropped without any grace; Hannah reached into her pockets for rope, a back-up weapon she had in store for Nathaniel in case the scenario did not go as smoothly as it did. She then lifted up Oliver's leg and tied one end of the rope to it. Without letting go of the other end of the rope, Hannah picked a small boulder and lugged it closer to the body. After that, she carefully tied the remaining rope around the rock and made sure it was tight enough to last the necessary amount of time. She picked up the small boulder again and pulled at it, dragging Oliver's body alongside her. With all her strength, she tossed the boulder to the water, and then nudged Oliver's body so that it would sink into the water.

The man in charge of the search held up the two sketches that were given to him. They were both sketched based off of Ron's description of Oliver and Hannah. He let the other participants take in the details, and then told them to move out. The group headed to the forest-like area that Ron had mentioned while still at the sheriff's place, all of them determined to find the targets. Meanwhile, Hannah was coming up with a way to dispose of Nathaniel's body, but that task was difficult for a woman who went through the amount of physical work that she did. Her mind and body were equally tired, but she was so _close._ It would not be long until she could flee for France, if everything there on out was executed perfectly. She lifted up Nathaniel's body and began to lug it over to the spot she thought was be a decent enough hiding place, perfectly concealed by the scattered lower branches of trees. At the very least, it would stall any search party from finding the body.

"Have any of you found a trace of _anything_?" The chief of the search party asked loudly. Most of them shook their heads, but one man pointed down a thin path. "It appears to be heavily trodden, and some footprints still remain."

"Let me see this." The leader said. Upon further inspection, it was now known that the path was taken quite recently, and it seemed to overlap, going in two directions. "…Half of you go down one end and the rest of you the other. The men obeyed the chief's directions, and said man went with the latter group. A few minutes had passed and the footprints became less distinct, but the area was becoming somewhat clearer. "…The target has either completely vanished or is very close…" one of the searchers said.

Hannah jerked her head up the moment she heard speech. Besides that, she remained as still as the corpse she held, belonging to Nathaniel. She could not see anyone from the angle she was, for she was hidden well among bushes, where she planned to hide Nathaniel's body. _Have I been pursued without notice?_ She gently laid down Nathaniel and looked through the bushes. There was in fact a group of men varying in age, but it was not as close as she thought. _Damn…this will have to do for now…I better get out of here!_ Hannah thought as she looked down at the body she failed to hide. She took a few steps away from the bushes, and then went for a full out sprint. _The plan seemed perfect up until now. Why did so much have to go wrong?_ Hannah lifted up her already torn dress off the ground so that she could run with more ease. Ironically, this caused her to trip and fall flat on her face.

"Did anyone else hear that?" The leader of the search party hesitantly turned around. Some men nodded, others shook their heads. "I think I heard a type of shout, followed by a crash" The leader continued. "It sounded like it came from that direction." A man pointed nearby the same bushes that Hannah had just fled from. _Damn, damn, damn! _Hannah hissed sharply as she got back up. She began to run again, but could not maintain her original speed. Plus, the area was even clearer now, so there was nowhere to hide. And by now they must have seen Nathaniel's body. Hannah looked behind her to see if anyone was behind her, and her worst fears were becoming real: she was being chased. The three that gave chase to her were gaining, and she had already begun to panic, little did Hannah know that the rest of the men stayed behind with the body. Hannah's fear had actually rejuvenated some of her strength, so she tried her hardest to get back to a sprint.

_Why, of all times, must this happen in broad daylight?!_ Sweat began to drip from Hannah's forehead; she was running out of breath much faster than she had in her previous chase. _Wait…this area's familiar…! This is the same place I chased that kid! Now what will I do? I…I could jump into the water and stay there if I get there fast enough. They'll think I committed suicide…hopefully…_

The dusty area where Hannah had killed Oliver was now at a visible distance. The woman, now being chased, let a smirk develop on her face. _It's only a matter of time…_ She headed full speed for the slope, but then suddenly stopped in her tracks. There was another group of men facing her, with expressions almost as shocked as hers. Without a word, Hannah backed away quickly, only to see the three men behind her were so close she might as well have been surrounded. Hannah was cornered and too devastated to even bother listening to the words that were being said. The gestures alone were proof enough that they knew she was a killer, and she was definitely going to be punished. "He-Heh…" Hannah began to chuckle, causing the men to stare at her with confusion. She backed away one more stepped and pulled out her gun.

"Shit, she's armed!" A member of the crowd yelled; many flinched back. "Like hell I would let myself be arrested!" Hannah screamed at the crowd like a madwoman; she raised the gun up, aiming it at her head. She let out a few more sick chuckles.

"I guess I will get to see that little boy again…just maybe…"

Hannah shot the gun; everyone in the crowd looked away that instant, for no person wanted to see any of the blood-splattering details. Hannah fell back and tumbled until she landed in the water, immediately being carried away by the current. The search party members stood there in dead silence, trying to comprehend what had just taken place. "Go…retrieve the body…if possible" The chief said, still in shock.

Slowly, the people headed down, but could not find any traces of Hannah's body. After a thorough search, they began to head back up the slope, but one man slipped as they proceeded. He grabbed on to another large rock to regain his balance, and with that he noticed something strange near the bottom of the slope, something that had been overlooked. There was a small boulder that had a rope tied around it; it was stuck in-between two of the many jagged rocks near the slope. "Wait guys, I think there's something down there…"

"Then let's have a look at it." A person in the group responded. With team effort, the search party managed to reach the small boulder in its awkward position; they pulled it out, noticing that something,_ someone_, was attached on the other end.

"Bloody hell…" The leader said as he looked at the sketch o Oliver, then back down at the tattered child which remained.

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><p>...<p>

Updates for the next chapter might occur at a reasonable time since my computer works again (for now)!


	18. Chapter 18: Penitence

Ainsley woke up late by quite a few hours; it was midafternoon. Even though a part of her was happy to miss the torturous morning lessons, she was worried that no one woke her up. _Even if the maids forgot to wake me up today, my teacher surely would have done so herself. What could be happening? _She casually got out from her bed and made it look partially neat. There was no point in putting full effort since the maids would rearrange it later.

Even when she tried to call for any nearby servant, there was no reply, so Ainsley had no choice but to groom on her own today. It was not that difficult since she merely put her hair in pigtails and changed her clothing, however, she would more than likely be told to take a bath later on. The young girl was struck with many forms of curiosity when she walked through the empty hallways of her home. _By now, I would have at least seen Aaron or someone to rush me for brunch. Whatever could be going on?_ Ainsley shuffled down the stairs to the living room area. Out of the blue, she heard a loud shout. _Mother?_ Ainsley scampered toward the main entrance to see multiple servants, including Aaron, with utterly astonished faces and her mother on her knees, leaning over and sobbing. One of the maids leaned down to comfort Priscilla, Ainsley's anguished mother, as said nine-year old tried to process the situation.

"What is going on?" Ainsley whispered to Aaron, after tugging his shirt. A few moments passed before he responded; his hand was over his face as if to hide his misery. He took in a deep breath to calm himself down and crouched down to Ainsley's height. Before uttering a syllable, Aaron placed his hand atop her head and gently patted it.

"Ainsley…"

"What?" Ainsley asked more urgently.

"Sir Nathaniel… Father…was found dead a mere few hours ago." Aaron hung his head in sorrow.

_Dead…dead…__**dead?**_

"Pa...PAPA!" Ainsley screamed as she burst into tears.

The transition from the unfortunate gathering at the manor's entrance to the wagon, which was now being ridden, was a blur to Ainsley. Despite everything that she thought about her father, she had not once wished him dead. She had cared for him deeply, but never showed it; that fact she was regretting horribly as the wagon carried on. For the first time, she looked up to see who else was in it. Her mother was right by her side, tears still steaming from her eyes, but her face was entirely blank and motionless, along with the rest of her body. Across from the two of them was Aaron, who was no longer wearing his servant clothes for some reason Ainsley did not know. He seemed to be picking at his fingernails, even though they were perfectly clean. It had now dawned on Ainsley that this was the 'immediate family' of the late Nathaniel. She constantly forgot that Aaron was technically her brother through adoption, mainly because he acted as a worker. _Why does he act as a servant if he's family? It was more than likely one of Papa's greedy deals… but with him gone, does that now make Aaron a suitable heir? _She now questioned in her mind. Aaron's behavior was a mystery to her, but that was insignificant now.

The carriage came to a halt; the driver soon opened the door to lead Priscilla out. Ainsley and Aaron followed. The building that was their destination was anything but extravagant, however, neither was the circumstance they were in, so it did suit. The three Harris members walked together in a loose line; Ainsley held on to her mother's hand. As they entered the room, there was mild chatter. The scent of the room was less than pleasing to the aristocrat's nose, but it was doubtful that anyone would have complained a significant amount considering that the building was meant for storing corpses.

Ainsley looked around the room to see what types of people were there. Most of them were young adults or older, except for her and one young boy who was debatably entering the first phase of maturity. There overall seemed to be three groups: The Harris family, the authority figures, and a young woman with the ponytailed boy Ainsley was just looking at. _It seems like mama can make friends…_ The young girl thought as she noticed the other young woman and boy having their share of tears. A man in uniform came up to him not long after their arrival; Aaron stepped up to do the talking. Ainsley let go of her mother's hand so she could see why the young woman and boy were here. _What did these two have to do with Papa?_ She thought while looking at the duo, not knowing the slightest of Nathaniel's interactions with the orphanage, or who else once lived in it.

Abruptly, the main door was swung open exceptionally loud. Everyone turned to the direction of the noise, but no one could quite see who it was yet. The loud crash of the door against the wall was followed by scattered and running footsteps, accompanied by faint panting. Finally, a young girl, around adolescent age, was perfectly in view. Ainsley looked at her peculiarly, and the two strangers behind her looked at her with shock. This girl had hair resembling the color violet, contradicting her sickly pale skin. The clothes that she was wearing made it clear that she was in bed, more than likely one from an infirmary; she was leaning against the wall simply to stand. Once she had caught her breath, the girl looked up, directly at the young woman and boy, and began staggering towards them. "It's a lie…right?"

"Mai, what are you even doing here?! You should be back at the clinic recovering!" The boy grabbed the girl's arm and held her to keep her balance. "The nurse was lying to me, right?! There's no way, there's absolutely no way…" Tears were streaming down her face at a quick rate, and those tears were large in size and number. "The woman…Miss Vienna told me…that he **died**! There's just no way…" She let out a few hiccups, and then began coughing. "Calm down Mai…" The boy kept saying.

_What? Were there others that actually cared for my father? _ Ainsley was raising an eyebrow at this whole conversation before her.

"Ron…it is really… true that Ollie's…_dead?"_

Before he could answer, another series of footsteps occurred. Miss Vienna entered the room with a worried expression on her face. "I sincerely apologize, but she insisted that we come here."

_Ollie? Wait, she couldn't be talking about…_ Ainsley shook her head; surely she was just assuming the worst. _The Ollie I knew would be somewhere in the world, surviving every way he can. It must be a coincidence with names. _

"Ollie's too fast of a runner to end up dead, and the crazy woman who tried to kill us ended up dead, so I'm told, so-!" Mai was stopped right in the middle of her sentence by the young woman, who slapped both of her hands over Mai's cheeks, causing her to let out a very high-sounding hiccup. "Miss Mikayla, the woman at the clinic was lying—"

"No she wasn't Mai." Mikayla said, looking at the girl directly in the eye, causing her to look older than her years."Oliver is dead, as much as we all wished that God forbid…" She paused, trying to keep her emotions in check. "He's gone. And there's nothing we can do for him now, so please stop lying to yourself or else accepting it will be worse for you!" Mikayla's voice had suddenly risen as she finished her statement; her eyes were reddening and growing in luster. Mai slumped down and broke out into more tears. Everyone else in the room was silent, except for Aaron, who asked discreetly for his conversation to continue outside.

"What…?" Ainsley said, unheard by anyone else. Her head felt muddled with too many thoughts and negative emotions. She looked around the room to see her mother, praying over her father's body, and then saw another worker, looming over some type of bench covered with a blanket. Ainsley remained looking at that bench for several seconds; her heartbeat felt heavier each moment that passed. Finally, she could no longer stand the suspense and ran up to the bench. Without wavering, she pulled up the blanket to see the worst of her nightmares realized: Oliver's damaged corpse lay perfectly still on the bench. Terrifying her more than anything, his eye was still open; it felt as if he were looking directly at her, adding to her tremendous feeling of guilt. She could not even hear the worker that was scolding her for 'coming in contact with the body'. _No…w-why? Why?!_

She screamed wretchedly as Oliver's eye was closed by one of the people at the scene.

_Huh? _Ainsley woke up to see Aaron pressing the back of his hand against her forehead. "Oh, thank goodness you're awake Ainsley. You gave us quite a scare" Aaron backed away as Ainsley's mother suddenly embraced her. "Please don't ever do that again! I've already lost Nathaniel…" Ainsley was saddened a tad more than she already was before. "I'm sorry mama…uh…where are we?"

"We're apparently in a clinic. Your mother insisted we went to the nearest one, big or small." Aaron responded. "It also happens to be the same one the other young girl is currently staying." Aaron gestured towards Mai, who was coughing a few times. Ron was holding a glass of water for her. _I wonder what those two had to do with Ollie…_ _the girl especially sounded close to him._ Ainsley continuously stared at the two and the noticed the same young woman who was with them before. _Her name is Mikayla, if I remember correctly. Perhaps I could ask her some questions since the other two look occupied."_

Ainsley waited for Aaron and her mother to leave for more of their discussions concerning Nathaniel's death. Mikayla was walking toward Ainsley's direction just as she thought of heading there. _How convenient…_ "Miss!" Ainsley yelled, trying not to sound too disruptive. "Yes?" Mikayla turned to look at Ainsley. "Uh, I was wondering…" Ainsley started."Do you…did you know that boy named Ollie? If yes, then how?"

"You're curious?" Mikayla wondered who Ainsley was and why she asked at that moment, but kept it to herself. "Well… I knew Oliver at the least decently. He had lived in our home for months." Mikayla said. _For months? He must have gotten fairly close to others then…_ Ainsley thought as she glanced over at Mai and Ron. Mai was the definition of depression, but she did stop crying; Ron kept trying to get her to drink water. "Is all that you want girl?" Mikayla looked ready to leave, in a polite way. "Oh! Is it okay if I asked you more questions?" Ainsley asked as she gave her attention back to Mikayla.

"I don't mind too much, but I will have to leave soon." Mikayla replied. "So please try to be quick"

"Okay" Ainsley faintly smiled. "How did Oliver come to you?"

"A man named Nathaniel Harris dropped him off at our orphanage. The young boy was apparently in some complications."

'_Complications' as in 'jail'…_Ainsley thought. "How…did he die?" She managed to let slide out of her lips, though she could barely accept the fact Oliver was dead. A subliminal disheartened expression showed on Mikayla's face. "I guess those who knew him would wonder…he was shot with a bullet by a woman who served Nathaniel. Her name was Hannah."

_NURSE HANNAH?!_

"Is something wrong?" Mikayla looked at Ainsley, whose face was petrified with a large amount of shock. "Ah… don't mind me, continue." Ainsley was feeling sick to her stomach. _Is there anyone I can still trust?_ Mikayla continued talking. "Oliver, Mai, and Ron were witnesses of Nathaniel's murder, and that was Hannah's motive to kill the three of them, but clearly, only one was killed." She took in another deep breath to remain calm. "Authorities keep the rest of the information to themselves. My best bet would be asking the young man who came with you for the rest. He seems to be in discussion with them. Now…I ought to be leaving. I have children to tend to, goodbye." Mikayla did not wait for a reply from Ainsley before leaving.

_That was insensitive of me to ask wasn't it? It's not like I'm the only one hurting. That woman looked ready to cry at any moment…_Ainsley thought to herself as a tear fell from her face. _How fitting…isn't it Ollie? Oh, but you can't answer that for me can you? Or any other question I ask in the future…I won't even be able to see your smiling face again…nor hear your voice again. _Ainsley recalled the image of Oliver's dead body. "Ollie…_Ollie…!" _Ainsley cried to herself as she held onto her blanket.

After what felt like ages, everyone returned home, except for Mai, who still needed to remain in care. The sad news of Oliver's death had to be told to those at the orphanage; naturally, such news was not accepted very well by children; many, if not all, of the members of the Harris mansion were put into some form of distress, many worried about their jobs. Sadly, most people were just sent to their beds in worry. Ainsley's mother needed servants attending to her throughout most of the night, due to her trauma, while Ainsley was waiting for the opportunity to sneak into Aaron's room. It was far late into the night, and no normal child would dare stay up this late to sneak into a room. Ainsley was unable to sleep regardless of whether she planned to sneak in or not, so she felt as if there was not much to lose.

"Who's there?" Aaron asked irritably. "Uh…it's me Ainsley…"

"Ainsley? Why on Earth would you be awake at this hour? Please do not bother me; I have much work to get done."

"Please don't be that way. It's that type of attitude that made me run away from this place" Ainsley remained calm, even though her brother was clearly stressed. Aaron sort of recoiled at Ainsley's blunt statement, but knew better not to take it too seriously, or to underestimate Ainsley's maturity. "What is it then?"

"I would like it if you told me what happened to Father and that boy in detail. I feel like my mind won't be at rest until I know the truth." Ainsley sat on a chair, ready to listen, but Aaron did not look so willing to tell _anything _to her. "I can understand your curiosity, but I doubt that hearing the story of what happened would be beneficial to your emotional health."

"My 'emotional health' was not that great to begin with, brother. May I please know what happened? I will only be here as long as it takes for you to tell me." Ainsley looked at him directly in the eye, her expression without any hint of emotion. Aaron conceded, seeing that rejecting her would be pointless.

"Well…I'm not exactly sure where to start."

"What reason was there for Hannah to kill Nathaniel?"

"Personal revenge, more than likely, but there was no evidence pointing to it."

"Who exactly were the three people at the building besides us?"

"I'm afraid I cannot answer _exact_ details, but due to financial donations, I was able to learn that the woman is the manager of an orphanage. Oh, those financial donations were given to the orphanage by Father. The two kids with her are more than likely from the orphanage, based on my assumption. "

"How much information do you have on the orphanage?" Ainsley felt like she was finally getting a lead on something; she actually had a chance of confirming her questions. "I have a full list of all residents in the orphanage, as well as the day they settled in, and through what means."

_Jackpot…_ Ainsley had a faintly visible grin as she asked her next question. "Is there a boy named Oliver on that list, and was he 'settled' within the past few months?"

"I don't have the list right in front of me, in case you don't know…" Aaron said as he searched through huge stacks of papers. About a minute later, he found it and scanned through it. "He's last on the list…he was admitted on December the 7th last year. About seven months ago."

"How did he get there?" Ainsley seemed anxious at this point. "Ainsley, you're acting as if you _knew_ this person…!" Aaron had a sudden realization that Ainsley was certainly acting as if she knew him, rather than being nosy. "He was…dropped off personally by _Nathaniel Harris_?" Aaron read as if he had just learned this for himself, which he did. _That would explain the rest of the reports…_Aaron thought to himself.

"Was there any details on what other things Father did with Oliver beforehand?" _There's no way Father would simply take Ollie out of jail…after all, wasn't Ollie a criminal?_

"…" Aaron gulped before responding. "Nathani-Father…did spend quite some time trying to prove the innocence of an accused boy…even I was involved briefly…"

"_Innocence?"_ Ainsley thought aloud. _Oliver was innocent of killing Olivia and Noah? But how? I remember with my own eyes I…_

"According to reports, a look-alike for the boy was sent to do murders, simply to get Oliver in jail. The look-alike was hired by two men…the real killer was never found, but the two conspirators were put in jail."

"So…to sum it up…Papa was doing good deeds, a boy was framed…and months later they were both wrongfully killed?" Ainsley was staring at the ground, not wanting to look anyone in the eye. "That would explain the whole story in short…" Aaron confirmed. _What could be going through her head?_ Aaron kept thinking to himself.

"T-thanks, brother…I-I'll be heading to bed now…" Ainsley got off the chair, and slowly began to leave the room."Good night, Ainsley."

Ainsley closed the door to her room the moment she reached it. Her legs were trembling horribly; she quickly fell to her knees. _Oliver was innocent the whole time…and I accused him… If I hadn't accused him, then both he and Father would be alive now…_ Ainsley recalled the events that took place as she slumped against the door.

"_I didn't do anything…Ainsley, can't you tell them it wasn't me?!_" Oliver said the day he was arrested. Ainsley had turned him down coldly. _I didn't trust him…I knew that Oliver would never kill, but I still couldn't trust him, I couldn't even see pass the look-alikes falseness. Ollie, I…failed you miserably. _Ainsley once again began to let out tears, though she thought she had wept her eyes dry.

"_I'm so sorry, Oliver…"_

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><p><em>...<em>

This is the second last chapter of the first half of the story. The second half will be a completely different story all together, so I recommend hitting "Follow author" if you want to see the rest of this story.


	19. Chapter 19: The Tainted Wings' Flight

"Three days passed since the death of Nathaniel Harris" The speaker said. "Three emotional days, when we all had to realize that one of our loved ones had passed…" The crowd stood as the man continued to speak. Many attended the funeral, even those who associated with Nathaniel through business. Aaron, Priscilla, and Ainsley stood in the front row, having a perfect view of him in his open casket. Unlike the first few days, Priscilla no longer shed tears for her lost husband, for she wept almost nonstop the days that preceded his final ceremony; Aaron seemed to grow exponentially in the short amount of time he was announced successor. The sudden large amount of obligations more than likely affected Aaron mentally. They both focused on the funeral, sharing similar melancholy expressions.

However, Ainsley seemed to show no interest whatsoever in her father's memorial service; she merely looked down at the ground, appearing more overcast than any of the others attending. Neither words nor motion were audible to her; though her eyes faced the ground, she saw nothing. She could hardly even feel the single tear that fell from her cheek. The only thing that was present, to her, was guilt, an unbearable misery that consumed her each passing moment. Ainsley blamed herself. All she thought of was that her father and Oliver would be alive if she had not falsely accused Oliver. _Would Oliver's memory even be recognized?_ She thought, finally looking up at the funeral procession. Her father would be resting in a fine casket, nearly everyone who came to the funeral was dressed extravagantly, except for a few servants, and the area around him was decorated with comely blossoms of flowers she could not even name. What would be done for Oliver, who had definitely suffered more within the few years of his life than Nathaniel had for the decades he lived?

The funeral began to close up after Aaron's speech. Apparently, he was also accepting his position as successor as he left his condolences for Nathaniel. Priscilla nudged Ainsley as she stood up; her daughter blinked as she looked up. It seemed as if outside was too bright for her as she tried to glance at her mother. Ainsley merely nodded as she held on to her mother's hand, and they left along with the guests that preceded them.

The desolate atmosphere at the orphanage was so thick it could be cut. Mikayla had attempted many times to make the children at least _somewhat_ energetic, but her effort was futile. She could not blame anyone for being depressed, for accepting Oliver's death completely still made tears come from her eyes. Not even during meals did the children even talk, unless it was a mere "excuse me". On top of that, many still wondered how long it would take for Mai to return. The emptiness of the two seats next to Ron almost pierced into a person's heart. If any visitor had come to adopt, they would have just left saddened by the sight of the kids. Mikayla had decided that homeschooling would not be successful today, so she dismissed the kids to do as they pleased, as long as none of her rules were broken. She walked up to her small office, and leaned against her desk. _So shortly after he came…Oliver had to be buried._ Mikayla thought as she held back tears. _Why must I feel so down when it is barely afternoon? _Normally, Mikayla would look out the window whenever she thought, but today doing so would have only been more depressing, for Oliver's gravestone rested just outside the orphanage.

About an hour passed since the children were dismissed by Mikayla, yet Ron remained in his seat. He had sat in his chair, simply staring at the two empty seats in the circular table which he always sat in. Anyone could tell he had been crying, though he was not at this moment. Ron recalled all of the fun idle chatter he had with Mai and Oliver; their smiling faces were burned into his memory. The more he clung to that memory, the more he felt the impulse to weep. He could never have his rivalry days with Oliver, whose death claimed nearly everyone's happiness within the local area. And even though Mai had survived getting shot, it would be several days before she would be allowed back into the orphanage; even if she were brought back soon, could she ever have such a blissful smile again? Her heart was more than likely weighed heavily by the tragic events, and possibly scarred by them. _Would Mai get over it, or would it traumatize her for the rest of her days?_

Ron sat up, knowing that sulking would bring him no benefit. He stretched a little bit, rubbed his eyes, and then got out of his chair. Upon looking outside, he could tell that at least half of the children remained in the orphanage; most of the kids, or rather adolescents, outside were near his age. They were playing ball in a different manner than what was the norm. The ball was tapped back and forth instead of being caught and thrown. _Maybe taking on a new challenge can get me out of the dumps. _Ron went down the hall looking for the shoe box, for he needed a new pair of shoes to run in. Just as he was about to make a turn, there was a knock on the front door. _Who could that be?_ Ron carelessly opened the door to see a young man with dark hair. He wore a white suit that bore the Harris family crest. Ron recognized it, for Mikayla had made deals with that family in the past. "...Good afternoon sir, what is your business?" Ron asked politely.

"Does a woman named Mikayla reside here?" The man asked.

"Yes, would you like me to get her for you?" Ron offered.

"No" the dark-haired man answered quickly. "I merely wanted to ascertain my information" He turned around and began to walk away, leaving Ron wondering what his purpose was. "Oh..." He said as he turned around. "Have a nice day"

"You too..." Ron replied, confused. Shortly after, the man was gone.

Aaron walked to the side of the orphanage where no one was; he looked around in a rather nonchalant manner. The building was larger than he had imagined, considering how many loans that the late Nathanial had given to ease its debts. It was very clean as well. Aaron ended up idly staring at it for a few moments before resuming his task. He continued walking until the point that he had almost completely circled the place; he then finally found what he was looking for: a gravestone, more specifically, Oliver's gravestone. _What a simple task that pleases my young sister. _Aaron thought as he looked down at the grave. In respect for the dead, Aaron left after a small prayer. He then returned to the carriage that he came in, where Ainsley had patiently been waiting for him. She instantly looked up when Aaron opened the door. "Is it—"

"Yes" Aaron answered, before the little girl could finish her question. "I saw no point in 'confirming location', since the information we are given as privileged people is always legitimate."

"I have my reasons" Ainsley muttered to herself.

Afterwards, the carriage left for Harris manor. The two siblings sat by one another quietly. Ainsley was still not used to Aaron being her company during travel, for he had always been the driver. Aaron did not seem to mind the quiet, for he was drifting off into sleep. _Aaron must really be working a lot since Daddy's death..._Ainsley looked at her brother's tired face. The bags under his eyes were quite visible, very comely for the average tycoon to have. She felt a small amount of pity for Aaron. He had been a worker all his life, and now he was forced by circumstance to take on all of their father's duties. _Had he one decent night of sleep this week? _Ainsley wondered. _Well, that does not really apply _to me now.

The driver called the two when they arrived at their destination. Aaron rose wearily and headed straight back for his office. The driver guided Ainsley back to her room. "Mister" she said as they walked.

"Yes, Miss Ainsley?" the servant replied.

"The place we were…that orphanage…can you take me there later today?" Ainsley asked, confusing her driver.

"Did you not finish all of your business? Should I bring Aaron with you?"

"No. I want to go alone. After dinner, preferably…please have the carriage ready by then."

"Why so late?" He raised an eyebrow at Ainsley.

"I have my reasons" She answered, then spoke no more.

Ainsley patiently waited for dinnertime, completing all of her lessons beforehand. The maid sent to summon her for dinner was surprised to see her waiting at the door. Without saying a word, Ainsley headed to the dining hall. It was fuller today; servants were eating at the table, which was abnormal. Ainsley then recalled that since Nathanial's death Aaron has been less strict with the servants, for they were his peers. She sat in her typical seat, next to her mother, and waited for her meal. Once again, Aaron was not present at dinner. Is paperwork something eternal? The little girl thought, still waiting. Shortly after, her dinner was delivered; she finished it quickly, while trying to look natural. When dessert was offered, she declined it, and then excused herself from the table, causing her mother and many others to look at her strangely.

Outside was very dark, and slightly breezy. The half-moon shone brightly over Ainsley, contradicting her black jacket, and the carriage she ran to. As she entered the carriage, she quietly said "Thank You" to the servant that was driving her back to the orphanage. He nodded in reply, and departed from Harris Manor. Ainsley remained silent during the ride, thinking about exactly what she would do once she reached the area. It gave her a very nauseating sensation to think the way she had for the past few days, yet she could not stop until the awful guilt would get off her chest. Before she had realized, they had already reached the orphanage, which was dead silent and still as could be, except for one lit room. Ainsley stepped out of the carriage and told her servant to wait for her, but he insisted that she be quick for the sake of safety.

In a circle, Ainsley walked looking for Oliver's grave. Her brother had assured it was here, yet she could not see it, more than likely because of the darkness caused by multiple trees. Just as she thought her brother was mistaken, she accidentally walked right into the gravestone, nearly falling over. She regained her balance quickly and took in a deep breath. _I have to somehow make things right…even if it is too late…_ Ainsley kneeled down in a prayer position directly facing the grave. She started to mutter words, or at least tried to, but then she could only cry. Extremely abundant and bitter tears acted as nourishment for the earth with Oliver beneath it. After several minutes, Ainsley wiped her reddened eyes, which were now slightly puffy; she coughed briefly after and took in another deep breath. Once again she attempted to pray and managed to do so, despite the tears still streaming down her face. After finishing, she got up and concluded her prayer by saying aloud: "…Not trusting you was by far the worst mistake I've done. I don't deserve forgiveness, but I give you my sincerest of apologies anyway. I'll miss you and goodbye, Oliver" Ainsley quickly ran back to the carriage and ran into it without saying a word to her driver, for she felt more ashamed than ever, yet felt a very vague sense of peace. Nonetheless, the two headed back to Harris Manor, leaving the grave in its lonely sate once again.

Hours passed; it was now near midnight. Nearly all people were asleep at this hour, but in the darkness a small bird surfaced. A mere goldfinch far more than forgotten compared to Oliver rested upon its master's grave. Just like many people, it longed for Oliver's presence, having been with the boy since he was the mere age of five, but would not be granted such a wish. All it could do was merely repose on the stone. Over the days, James had become more filthy and smaller in size due to lack of food. He still bore the small splatter of Oliver's blood from the time said boy was shot by his killer, Hannah. The times had shown no sign of blessing, so all that remained was to leave. Carrying the sorrow of many, the old bird flew out into the cool summer night, its bloodied wings forever tainted.

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_If you thought the ending statement was cheesy, feel free to write this story yourself. If you __**liked**__ the story, then feel free to leave a review._


	20. Chapter 20: Ainsley's Prayer

_Oliver._

_I cannot simply take back what I have done to you. The days we shared happily are over._

_Despite this, I still wonder what would have happened if I was more aware…_

_I regret not trusting you, for you were truly my closest friend, regardless if you knew._

_Wherever you are now, I hope you hear my feeble cry for you._

_You know, I truly loved you, your sister and Noah. We were more than a family than my actual kin._

_The days we spent together, now in the past, did bring me great joy. Even as I grow older, I'll remember you three and keep these memories close to my heart. I shall never forget you, lest I die._

_In your state, I cannot expect understanding or forgiveness from you._

_In spite of our exposure to cruel reality, like a child, I hope that someday we could all be together again, and I can see your smiling faces._

_Happiness had always looked best on you…_

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And **now** the story is done, regardless if this babbling contributed.

Please review, this is the last chapter and I haven't got much advice as a writer at all.

Again, I sincerely thank you for reading this story.


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